Membership Spotlight highlights the work of our member organisations and outlines how other individuals and NGOs can support them. We are shining the light on Forces Children Scotland for Month of the Military Child.

Month of the Military Child: celebrating child human rights defenders

April is Month of the Military Child – a time to recognise and celebrate the strengths of forces children and all they bring to their communities. This year’s celebration is especially significant, as it is the first since the incorporation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into Scots law. It’s an opportunity not only to highlight the strengths of forces children, but to reaffirm their rights, and renew our collective responsibility to uphold these.

Rights and resilience

Children in armed forces families often live extraordinary lives – frequently moving home, changing schools, building new friendships, and enduring long periods of separation from their loved ones. These experiences shape their identity. Many tell us about feeling proud of their parents  – but also feeling pride in their own identity as a forces child.

The experiences armed forces children and young people have shared with us highlight their sense of adventure, their courage, adaptability and the energy they bring to their schools, friendships and wider communities. Yet adults and systems must be careful not to mistake these strengths as meaning armed forces children do not need support and advocacy.

Much has been said about the ‘resilience’ of children in armed forces families. And while it’s true that they show remarkable bravery and determination, we as adults must be cautious not to shift a burden onto children that is not theirs to bear. Children in armed forces families face a range of challenges, often created by the systems around them – it is these systems that have the duty to improve, to mitigate challenges and ensure that children and young people can access their rights.

Forces Children as Human Rights Defenders

At Together, we had the privilege of working alongside armed forces children and young people to shape our State of Children’s Rights Report 2024. For the first time, the report focused directly on the stories shared by children and young people themselves – with over 50 children from armed forces families taking part. It takes real courage to share your feelings and the challenges you face – especially to decision-makers who would be reading this report. These children and young people are not just telling their stories – they are asserting their right to be heard, standing up for their rights and the rights of others. In doing so, they are acting as Child Human Rights Defenders.

Their contributions show a deep awareness of their rights under the UNCRC – especially the right to family life, education, healthcare, play, and participation. They speak candidly about the difficulties of parental deployment, unsuitable housing, and about feeling invisible in school systems that don’t always recognise their experiences. They also share what makes a difference: being understood, having their needs taken seriously, and staying connected to family – especially when a parent is deployed.

One of the clearest examples forces children standing up for their rights is challenging assumptions around parental separation. Article 9 of the UNCRC – which protects children’s right not to be separated from their parents except when this is in their best interests – is too often thought to apply only to Care Experienced children or those with a parent in prison. But it applies just as much to children whose parents are deployed with the armed forces¹. Children told us they are given little information about their parent’s deployments, can struggle to maintain contact, and some face barriers to maintaining emotional bonds due to limited and closely monitored communication. As one child explained: “All I say is I love you, but I think it’s quite invasive. You know that they have got to be read and you might not want others reading it.” (Louis)

These experiences show the urgent need for systems and services – from the Ministry of Defence to schools and local authorities – to uphold children’s rights to information and to family life. It’s not enough to assume children are “fine” because they seem “resilient.” Children need timely, age and stage-appropriate information; practical support; and safe spaces to express how they feel and access support. It is the responsibility of the adults and systems surrounding them to provide this.

Supporting strength, not demanding it

To be clear, this blog is not about romanticising hardship. The challenges children face – from inadequate housing to interrupted education to lack of child-friendly complaints processes – are real. But amid those challenges, their strengths are extraordinary: not just in how they cope, but in how they care, connect, and campaign.

Forces children show bravery in leaving old friends behind and starting anew. They show courage in sharing their stories and speaking up to systems that too often exclude them. They show determination in pushing for recognition – not only for themselves, but for their siblings and all forces children.

Keeping #RightsOnTrack

This Month of the Military Child, let’s celebrate those strengths – not by telling children they should “be strong,” but by working to ensure that the systems around them are. Children thrive when the adults and systems around them listen, care and act on what they are told. With the UNCRC now part of Scots law, it is our collective duty to make those rights real – across law, policy and practice.

At Together, we are proud to continue standing alongside armed forces children and young people through our Rights on Track campaign, helping them monitor and hold governments accountable for upholding their rights. Later this month, we look forward to the launch of the Rights Charter by our friends at Forces Children Scotland. The new Charter, co-produced with armed forces children and young people, aims to keep the focus on their rights and drive forward positive change. It is more than a document – it is a testament to the vision and values of children who refuse to be left out of the conversation.

• Find out more about Month of the Military Child here, including co-produced resources like the Strengths Cards and Strengths Paperchain and Forces Children’s Rights Charter.

Footnote

1. UNCRC records in relation to the drafting of Article 9 indicate that the two examples are not exhaustive. Other examples include separations caused by armed conflict and parents working abroad. See coverage of Article 9 in Unicef Handbook on Implementation of the UNCRC and in Monitoring State Compliance with the UN Convention on the RIghts of the Child: An Analysis of Attributes.

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State of Children’s Rights Report 2024

• Read our recently published report which 220 babies, children and young people share their stories.
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