Issue - meetings

“To consider the following Motion in the names of Councillors Marchington and Munro;

This Council notes that:

1)    School uniform can be a significant expense for many families and the cost-of-living crisis means that buying school uniforms is an even bigger concern than usual for many parents;
 

2)    Recent research by the Children’s Society found that parents spent on average £287 a year on primary school uniforms and £422 a year on secondary uniforms, with branded items costing more. The Children’s Society also found that pupils are expected to have an average of 3 branded items of uniform, while almost a third of secondary school pupils are required to own up to branded items;

3)    The cost of uniforms can be unnecessarily pushed up by practices such as sourcing a uniform from a single specialist provider;

4)    The Government has published new statutory guidance aimed at making school uniforms more affordable after a legal requirement to do so passed into law in 2021. In contrast to the previous school uniform guidance, which was non-statutory, the Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Act, which was introduced in the House of Commons in February 2020, and completed its stages in 2021, became law with cross-party support and requires the Government to publish legally binding guidance requiring school authorities to consider costs when setting school uniform policies. Schools and their governing boards must have regard to the statutory guidance when developing and implementing their school and trust uniform policies. The main points of the statutory guidance are: 

(i) Schools need to ensure that their uniform is affordable.

(ii) In considering costs, schools will need to think about the total costs of school uniforms.

(iii) Schools should keep the use of branded items to a minimum.

(iv) Schools should ensure that their uniform supplier arrangements give the highest priority to cost and value for money (including the quality and durability of the garment).

(v) Schools should ensure that second-hand uniforms are available for parents to acquire. Information on second-hand uniforms should be clear for parents of current and prospective pupils and published on the school’s website.

This Council believes that:

1)    The statutory guidance set out by the Government is having a limited impact – branded items are still rife and a survey by The Children’s Society shows that unform costs are rising. The statutory guidance is not clear enough and has been interpreted differently by schools. Many schools are failing to adhere to it; 

2)    Spending on school uniform is a lottery. Some schools require parents to spend money on expensive uniform from specialist shops, while other schools will allow parents to buy from the high street, often at a significantly reduced price, and a small minority of schools do not require pupils to wear a uniform at all;

3)    The cost of highly branded school unform policies is unacceptable. The country is experiencing a cost-of-living crisis. Families are facing a huge squeeze on their income and expensive school uniform policies are  ...  view the full agenda text for item 14:

Item not considered.

(Meeting terminated in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 16(2).)