More children are expected to arrive at school this term with unclean clothes, unwashed hair and unbrushed teeth, according to teachers who have observed a rise in hygiene poverty.
Seventy-two percent of school staff think there has been an increase in hygiene poverty in their school in the last year, according to a poll of 500 school staff, and 71% expect the level to rise further at the start of the school year this month.
Dirty uniforms and PE kits, unwashed hair and unclean teeth were the most common signs staff questioned in June had seen.
Julie McCulloch, the director of policy at the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: “Hygiene poverty is linked to very high levels of deprivation as families struggle with the cost of things like washing machines, energy bills and clothes. Many schools routinely help out by discreetly washing clothes and providing items of uniform.
“This has long been the case but has become more of an issue following the pandemic and cost of living crisis as more families struggle financially. The level of child poverty in the UK is utterly unacceptable and the government must do more to tackle the problem.”
The poll, carried out for the charity the Hygiene Bank and the cleaning brand Smol, defines people as being in hygiene poverty when they are “caught between being able to heat their home, pay their bills, buy food or keep clean”.
Some of the school staff said they had personally washed uniforms and PE kits for children at home, and handed out laundry detergent for families in need.
In the survey, conducted by the market research platform Attest, 72% of school staff said pupils affected by hygiene poverty were experiencing low self-esteem. Fifty-three percent said these pupils were isolated or “left out” by others in class, and 50% said they had seen a negative impact on mental health. Twenty-six percent had seen absenteeism as a result of hygiene poverty.
One respondent said: “Students are often left with no desk partner in class. Makes it awkward for staff members to deal with the situation. Students are often faced with working alone. Other students make nasty comments in front of the class to single them out.”
Another respondent said they had “a feeling of powerlessness” that they were unable to do more.
Sarah Smith, the executive headteacher of St Cuthbert’s Catholic Academy, a primary school in Blackpool, said: “We have seen an increase in students coming to school with unwashed uniforms and we know that this has an effect on their mental health and overall wellbeing, which in turn will have a negative impact on their education.”
Smol, in collaboration with the Hygiene Bank, hopes to raise £25,000 to expand its Suds in Schools initiative, which provides mini-launderettes, to 25 extra schools, so more families in need are provided with clean clothes.
Labour has also pledged to cut how much families are expected to pay for uniforms to reduce school clothing costs for parents.
The shadow education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, t said this would include limiting to three the number of items of costly school-branded uniform, such as skirts, blouses, polo shirts, trousers, jumpers and ties, and PE kit that parents are forced to buy.
The party’s research shows the cost of school uniforms has risen 30% in the last three years, more than the 13% rise in the overall cost of clothing.
