The Armed Forces Families Federations: the Naval Families Federation (NFF), Army Families Federation (AFF), and RAF Families Federation (RAFFF), are independent organisations that exist to represent the voices of serving personnel and their families.
We are united by a shared purpose: to ensure that the lived experience of Service life is properly understood by those making decisions, and that both personnel and families are not just supported, but are able to thrive.
At our core, we listen, and we don’t shy away from what we hear.
We gather evidence from across our communities on issues such as housing, childcare, education, healthcare, partner employment and the overall impact of Service life. We then use that evidence to challenge where things aren’t working, and to advocate for meaningful, lasting change.
Our role is to be independent, honest brokers of the lived experience of Service life; taking the voices of personnel and families directly into the Ministry of Defence, Whitehall and Westminster.
Each Federation focuses on the specific pressures within its Service, but we work closely together where challenges overlap. That collaboration strengthens our influence, ensuring that where there are systemic issues, they are heard clearly and addressed collectively; not diluted or lost.
We are proud to stand alongside organisations that genuinely care about the Armed Forces community, and who are willing to work together to make things better.
Ours is a community that shows resilience every day, often quietly and without recognition. Representing that community, and making sure its voice carries weight in the rooms where decisions are made, is both a responsibility and a privilege.
We are particularly proud of the sector’s willingness to collaborate, but also to challenge. Progress comes from being prepared to speak up, to question, and to keep pushing for better outcomes. That shared commitment to improvement is what makes the Families Federations effective.
Cobseo provides a vital space for collective influence across the Armed Forces charity sector.
Through its networks, we are able to connect lived experience with service delivery, share insight, and build a more complete picture of the challenges facing personnel and their families. That, in turn, strengthens the case for change.
For the Families Federations, this matters. Our role is to advocate; and we are stronger when that advocacy is reinforced by the wider sector. Engaging through Cobseo helps ensure that conversations in Whitehall and Westminster are informed not just by policy, but by reality.
Ultimately, it allows us to do what we are here to do: to stand up for Service personnel and their families, to call out where things aren’t right, and to work collectively to make them better.
Afghanistan support
In light of recent events in Afghanistan, please find information and support resources here