The cost of living crisis means buying school uniforms is an even bigger concern than usual for many parents this year. And if your child is starting a new school or moving up to secondary level, it can mean starting over and shelling out for expensive bespoke items such as blazers and jumpers, on top of the usual staples.
As with many things, this is one of those areas of spending that is a real lottery. While some schools still require parents to fork out on pricey gear that can only be bought from specialist shops, others will let you buy the whole lot on the high street, allowing some to take advantage of low-cost deals such as Aldi and Lidl’s £5 “uniform bundles” (typically two polo shirts, one sweatshirt and trousers or skirt).
Of course, there are some schools that do not require youngsters to wear a uniform.
This week, one Citizens Advice branch in Cheshire said it had seen an influx of people coming to it “desperate for help because they can’t afford the upcoming school costs”. The charity highlighted the case of Paula, who has two daughters aged nine and 14, and said: “All the uniform costs really add up, especially the clothing for secondary school, which has the school logo on it. My daughters’ school has also just changed its PE kit to a branded logo, too.”
Earlier this month the disability equality charity Scope said it was anticipating an increase in uniform sales at charity shops, with the pressure on family budgets prompting more people to go down the preloved route.
The annual financial burden on many families in England was supposed to be lessened by legally binding guidance on school uniforms that came in before the 2022 academic year.
These rules require state schools to remove “unnecessary” branded items and allow more high street options. Schools also have to ensure there are arrangements in place so that secondhand uniform is available to all parents.
But, one year on, some parents complain that many schools have not done enough about the cost of uniforms and have stuck with strict policies that include expensive extras such as branded sports kit, and even socks carrying a school’s initials, on top of everything else.
“We’re in the middle of a cost of living crisis and schools are making it difficult for children to attend school by putting barriers, like expensive uniform policies, in the way,” says the campaigner Gill Long, who won some concessions after complaining about the cost of the uniform at her child’s school in Kirklees, West Yorkshire.
“You can get two grey V-neck jumpers in Asda for £7 compared with a brand-new school jumper that costs £18, and if you are going to wear a jumper to school, you probably need more than one.”
Long has launched a petition that calls on the government to amend its now-statutory uniform guidance to put a limit on the number of branded items in a state school uniform. It also calls for a direct complaints channel for parents, and for Ofsted to be tasked with policing schools’ compliance with uniform rules.
“There’s a reticence from parents because people think that if you complain about the cost, it might be because you can’t afford it,” she says.
“Schools have taken the mick on this for long enough. We’re in a cost of living crisis and someone needs to take a stand. I’m trying to get the law changed so it works for everybody.”
In a recent poll, 76% of the parents surveyed agreed that the cost of buying school uniforms and supplies put a strain on their household budget. Just over half agreed that abolishing school uniforms would help save them money, according to the survey of 1,000 parents by Censuswide for the footwear brand Wynsors.
To meet the substantial costs that can be involved – estimates vary from anywhere between £100 and more than £400 a year a child, depending on which survey you look at – parents are having to make cuts elsewhere to afford it.
This might mean spending less on new things for themselves, and even taking shorter or cheaper holidays, the poll found.
Recent research by the charity the Children’s Society estimated that parents in England spend £422 a year on uniform for a child at secondary school, and £287 for primary schoolchildren. The high cost was partly attributed to the prevalence of branded items that have to be bought from a specialist shop or the school, with pupils requiring an average of three.
Despite the legal obligation for schools in England to review uniform policies before the new rules came in, the charity’s survey of 2,000 parents found that, almost a full school year later, 45% said their school uniform policies had not been updated.
Mark Russell, the charity’s chief executive, says that while some schools have made “commendable changes” to reduce costs, this positive trend is “not widespread enough”.
The statutory guidance stresses the promotion of secondhand uniform options and discourages branded items as well as single-supplier contracts. However, it appears that the legislation is not being widely and strongly enforced, Russell says.
Based on a much larger sample, the Schoolwear Association counters that the average cost of compulsory secondary school uniforms and sportswear in England this year increased by only 0.5% to £96 a pupil. Its figures are based on a survey of a quarter of all secondary schools, with close to 900,000 pupils.
Given the runaway inflation of the past year, in real terms this equates to a significant decrease in school uniform costs overall, suggesting the guidance is working, says Matthew Easter, who chairs the organisation and also runs the Trutex brand.
While he concedes there is a “lump” of cost when children start or change school, Easter reckons its data shows that families do not have to rebuy everything each year – giving the example that, according to its data, the average child has 2.4 blazers during secondary school.
“Children wear school uniforms for 195 days of the year, making it crucial for garments to be designed to withstand daily wear and tear,” he says. The robust uniform sold by specialists represents “significant value for money”, he says, as it can be handed down to siblings or passed on to other families.
While having to wear a uniform is viewed by many as a way to reduce peer pressure at school when it comes to the latest clothes, getting rid of this requirement could create a bigger problem for parents, Easter adds.
“If you say you can buy a blue jumper from anywhere, you’re going to get a huge variety. You’re going to get Ralph Lauren blue jumpers and Lidl blue jumpers, and then the whole point of uniform, which is to unify, ends up being broken down.
“As an industry, from day one, we’ve been supportive of the principle that uniform be reasonably priced. What we’ve got to do is move away from this idea that if we get rid of all the branded items, it will all be OK, because that’s just not true.”
