Parents of children heading to secondary school in September have revealed their anxieties over uniform prices during the cost of living crisis.
Lab coats, cricket caps and socks carrying a school’s initials are just some of the items some parents might find on uniform lists for many state and independent schools across the country… alongside staples such as blazers, shirts and shoes.
Distinctive designs, logos on garments and strict rules on skirts and trousers ensure that parents often can’t opt for cheaper alternatives available on the high street.
The average cost of a state school secondary school uniform is currently £337, with one UK uniform charity telling the BBC this week that demand for free uniforms has risen dramatically.
An average secondary school uniform costs £337, with additional extras such as lab coats and science goggles adding extra financial pressure for parents. Stock image
Expense: A blazer for students attending Aberdeen Grammar School will set parents back £103 – MailOnline has contacted the school for comment
Parents on Twitter have expressed anxiety at state and independent schools in the UK insisting on clothes such as blazers and t-shirts carrying logos (Pictured: uniform for leading UK state school Tiffin School in Surrey; a lab coat costs £18, while a sports shirt, right, is £25)
Thetford Academy in Norfolk prices its blazers – with the school’s name on the pocket – from £35
Despite new Government guidelines in the pipeline designed to curb costs, many schools currently only allow apparel carrying their logos, and request parents to buy them from specialist shops.
The Department for Education estimated earlier this year that parents could save £50 by buying uniform from supermarkets or high street stores rather than specific uniform stores.
Parents of primary school-aged children, which tend to have a more relaxed approach to uniform, have benefited from supermarket price wars in recent years.
Aldi and Lidl are both currently selling two polo shirts for £1.75, with Asda offering two for £2.50, and Tesco selling three shirts for £4.
However, pupils heading for secondary schools face being handed a uniform list, with more expensive liveried items still considered the norm.
Prices on leading UK secondary school uniform supplier Stevensons show parents across the country face similar prices.
A blazer for students attending Aberdeen Grammar School will set parents back a whopping £103, rising to £130 for a longer version – with both available from John Lewis or Stevensons. MailOnline has contacted the school for comment.
Parents have taken to social media to bemoan the sky-high costs and call for more support
Elsewhere, a distinctive sports polo shirt for Tiffin School in Surrey costs £25, while a black and purple polo shirt for students Eden Boys’ Leadership Academy in Birmingham costs £11.50 and can only be bought via a uniform shop.
Kathryn Wakeham, who runs the A Better Fit charity in Cardiff, told the BBC: ‘Most parents say they are able to source basics like the school trousers and polo shirts. But the cost of blazers and PE kits is astronomically high, and you need more than one.
‘And often there is a complete school uniform change when children move years, so you have to buy new, regardless of the size of the child.’
School uniform with distinctive designs mean parents are unable to buy more generic garments. Pictured: A short sleeved polo shirt for children attending the Eden Boys’ Leadership Academy in Birmingham costs £11.50
A traditional blazer with a logo for a secondary school pupil costs around £40, with one pair of sports socks costing around £7.50 a pair. A jumper costs £22 and a tie costs £6
Parents have taken to social media to bemoan the sky-high costs, with one tweeting: ‘They talk about recession and poverty and the fact it’s so hard to get by these day but they expect to get expensive uniforms and school books that cost a lot it’s ridiculous.’
Another posted: ‘Price Of school uniforms is expensive, way too expensive.. then throw in the shoes, school bag etc etc…
‘More needs to be done to help families who simply can’t afford to buy new stuff … the worry is kids getting hand me downs can sometimes be on the end of cruel taunts.’
A third added: ‘Can anyone explain to me why schools won’t provide sew on/iron on school badges so parents can buy standard supermarket polo shirts and jumpers and just add the badge? Why make hard up parents buy expensive uniforms?? And don’t start me on school PE kits.’
@CarolinaPostma commented that protest was needed to get schools to stop insisting on school uniforms with logos on them, saying: ‘I’d refuse to do it, see what happens and then challenge.
‘Don’t just take it sitting down. If all the parents stood up to this they’d have to do something… at least try.’
In July, it was announced that from September 2022, schools would be banned from requiring unnecessary branded items on children’s clothing – but there have been two new Education Secretaries since the Government announced the rule, with James Cleverly currently in the role.
Then Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said that uniform shouldn’t be a ‘burden for parents or a barrier to pupils accessing education’ and that from the next academic year, schools will offer more high street and second-hand options for parents and children to source their uniform in a bid to make them more affordable.
It’s hoped the new statutory guidance means that households won’t have to spend as much money on dressing their children for school.