As reported by The Standard, an East London school has spent over £100,000 to help parents afford the cost of uniforms
At Cumberland Community School, around 270 new year 7 pupils are set to receive vouchers worth up to £400 to cover costs for a new blazer, tie and laptop.
It is estimated that the average cost of school uniforms for primary and secondary school children is £422 and £287 respectively.
Many parents are left in financial difficulties due to the high costs, with an estimated 29% claiming they will sacrifice heating and food to afford uniform costs. It was also reported that 31% will likely go into debt to fund school clothing for their children.
At Cumberland Community School, the leadership team felt inspired to provide aid for families following several parents coming forward to express their struggle with the cost of uniforms and computer equipment.
To help parents with these costs and ensure that children aren’t restricted educationally by circumstance, the school decided to issue vouchers to families, and scrap branded items to reduce costs.
Under the Education Act 2021 schools are advised to reduce the requirement of branded items, and to aim to increase the availability of second-hand uniform items.
This reduction in branded items is set to be furthered by the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which will cap the number of required branded items in a school uniform to three items. Whilst these reforms will not provide financial support to parents struggling with the costs, they will aim to reduce the bill.
These small changes can add up to make real changes for struggling families, making a good education more accessible for children from all economic backgrounds.
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