The Army Families Federation has teamed up with research organisation RAND Europe and the Forces in Mind Trust (FiMT) to better understand how military life affects family finances.
Financial challenges military families may face due to Service life include:
partner employment issues which could mean a family surviving on a single income or the non-serving partner having a reduced or no pension;
key housing costs such as rent being deducted at source and not being budgeted for;
potential lack of budgeting experience, for example if the Service person enlisted straight from home;
the unpredictability of postings, meaning variations in income, with significant military allowances in some locations and none in others.
They'd like to hear the views of current and ex-Service personnel and their spouses and partners on whether military life affects their ability to easily bounce back from any financial set-backs.
They also welcome the views of divorced former spouses and widowed spouses, who may have previously been relying on the Service person’s income and pension.
The survey can be found here.
The survey closes on 31 October 2022.
The survey feedback will help inform recommendations to the MOD on further support for Service personnel and their families.
To find out more about AFF, visit www.aff.org.uk
Notes :
The Army Families Federation (www.aff.org.uk) is the independent voice of Army families: regular or reserve, wherever they are based, whatever the make-up of their family.
RAND Europe is a not-for-profit research organisation whose mission is to help improve policy and decision-making through research and analysis.
Forces in Mind Trust works within the military charities sector to support the United Kingdom’s Armed Forces community and improve the transition to civilian life.