Ministers have been asked to extend Service Pupil Premium funding and wraparound childcare to the children of Royal Fleet Auxiliary personnel, and have replied that existing arrangements are kept under review, according to an answer given in Parliament.
Rachel Gilmour, the Liberal Democrat member for Tiverton and Minehead, asked what assessment had been made of the adequacy of welfare and family support for Royal Fleet Auxiliary personnel and their families, and whether eligibility for schemes open to armed forces families would be extended to them.
Calvin Bailey, Parliamentary Under-Secretary and Minister for Veterans and People, said: “The Ministry of Defence recognises the importance of supporting Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) personnel and their families. RFA personnel and their families have access to a range of welfare and family support services, and we continue to keep these arrangements under review to ensure they remain appropriate to the needs of the workforce.
“Support available for RFA personnel and their families includes enhanced leave entitlements and tailored assistance through mechanisms such as Occupational Health, keep-in-touch days, and reasonable workplace adjustments. Further support is delivered through the Employee Assistance Programme, the Defence Health and Wellbeing Portfolio, and Family and People Services, with the RFA workforce also benefitting from an extended welfare network under the umbrella of expert services, including the Navy Families Federation, ensuring holistic support for employees and their families.”
Royal Fleet Auxiliary personnel are civilians employed by the Ministry of Defence who crew the ships that fuel, supply and support the Royal Navy at sea, and their conditions sit outside the arrangements that cover service families.
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary employs around 1,800 people and crews the tankers and stores ships that keep the Royal Navy at sea, along with the Bay class landing ships and the aviation training ship Argus. Its sailors are civil servants and not service personnel, which is the distinction the question was aimed at. Pay and conditions have been a running problem, with members of the RMT and Nautilus International taking strike action in 2024 over a long period of below-inflation awards, and the service has struggled to hold on to qualified officers.
