DC/BFE British Families Education Service / Service Childrens Education Association

Identity Statement
Reference code: GB/366/DC/BFE
Title: Records of the British Families Education Service/Service Childrens Education Association
Dates of creation: 1947-2001
Level of description: Fonds
Extent: 14 boxes; 1 outsize photograph album

Context
Administrative history: The British Families Education Service (BFES) was established by the Foreign Office in 1946 to provide schooling for the children of British families stationed in the British Zone of Germany after the Second World War, and amidst the post-War devastation. In the winter of 1951-1952 it was taken over by the Army and became Service Childrens' Education. The BFES Association was founded in 1967 to enable BFES teachers to keep in touch. In the 1980s it merged with the Service Childrens' Education Association (SCEA), which had changed its name to SCE, to become the BFES/SCE Association. It arranges annual reunions and publishes an annual magazine.

Content and Structure
Scope and content: Records of the BFES/SCE Association, 1947-2000, comprising:

Material relating to the Association such as minutes of the Executive Committee, 1968-2000; minutes of AGMs, 1996-1999; membership lists; Executive Committee lists; papers and photographs concerning annual reunions; videos relating to SCEA and BFES work.

Material concerning the SCEA, including booklets and official information regarding vacancies at certain schools and conditions of service.

Publications of the Association and its predecessors, including the BFES Gazette, the SCEA Bulletin and the BFES/SCE Association newsletters and magazines. The collection also includes individual copies of other army and educational publications.

Memorabilia collected from members of the Association relating to their work with the BFES in Germany, Cyprus, Hong Kong and Aden, notably photographs (and copies) of staff, students, school buildings and student activities; newspaper cuttings relating to individual schools and events; programmes of school events and musical and drama productions; official documentation such as driving licences, vehicle registration, ration cards and club membership; audio tapes; notes on geographical areas, climate, and members of teaching staff; annual reports and teaching schemes.

Research material on the education of service children, including typed official reports and newspaper articles.

Subject terms: Armed forces; Service children's schools

Corporate names: BFES, British Families Education Service; BFES/SCE Association

Conditions of Access and Use
Access conditions: Available for study.
Finding aids: Electronic list.

Allied materials
Related units of description: Further material relating to the BFES may be found in the papers of Arabella Kurdi (DC/AK) and Mimi Hatton (DC/MH).