How flexible working at the MOD allowed this mother to support her children through their exams

Flexible working to support my family

Hi, I’m Sylvia and I work for the Army supporting their outputs as a Civil Servant. Sometimes in life it is the small things that can make a big difference.  Back in May/June my children were taking their GCSEs/A levels, a stressful time for them and for me, and particularly as there had been no public examinations for two years.  

Being able to work flexibly over this period as well as the support and understanding from my manager and colleagues made a huge difference. Living in a rural area where buses only run every two hours and often don’t arrive at all meant that I had to be available to drop everything I was doing at work and drive my daughter to her college so that she arrived in good time to take her exam.

My son has additional needs, so I needed to be around to ensure that he knew which exam he had and when and talk through any anxiety he had.  I am thrilled to share they both achieved the results required to attain places on their chosen courses and I completed all my work too.

I am so grateful to my MOD colleagues, their kindness and understanding at this stressful time and the MOD’s proactive support of flexible and hybrid working which has made all the difference.