Worrying about affording school uniform is unacceptable, that's why we're cracking down on branded items writes Andy Burnham
When you send your kids off to school at the start of the year, there’s plenty to be anxious about.
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Will they settle in? Will they make new friends? Will they come home with a smile on their face? But one thing parents shouldn’t have to worry about is whether they can afford the school uniform.
Yet for too many families, that isn’t just a little bit of a concern - it’s the biggest. New research from Save the Children finds nearly half of parents say buying new uniform is the biggest financial worry they have about their kids going back to school.
No parent will be shocked by that. Thousands of families are feeling backed into a corner, unable to afford to give their children the start in school they’re desperate to. It also means kids being made to feel like outsiders – and often being bullied – for something they have absolutely no control over.
I won’t have that. So we’re ending the school uniform rip-off.
This week our limit on branded uniforms came into effect. Now, primary schools will only be able to ask students to wear three branded items, or four for secondary school kids.
And we won’t accept any excuses for dodging the limit. Whether that’s listing an item as ‘optional’ but offering no alternative, or pressuring parents to buy the school’s own expensive sports gear. Where schools try and get around the rules, we’ll step in.
But I know it’s not enough just to cut the number of branded items schools require. We need to make sure parents are getting a fair deal on the ones they do have to buy too. So we’re strengthening the rules on how schools buy their uniforms in the first place.
We’ll ask schools to shop around for new suppliers at least every five years, so families aren’t stuck paying whatever one company decides works for them. And we’ll expect them to look for suppliers that offer payment plans, so parents who are struggling don’t have to find the money for everything in one go.
Like free school meals, breakfast clubs and free childcare, this is another one of our policies to give families some breathing space on the cost of living. But it’s about fairness too – for parents and, even more importantly, for our kids. Because a school crest should be about showing what they have in common, not what their parents can afford.
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Andy Burnham is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Member of Parliament for Makerfield.
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