Families are still facing ‘crippling’ uniform costs and demands for too many branded items, despite new rules designed to make school clothing more affordable.

Parents are spending on average £422 per year for a child’s secondary school uniform and around £287 for primary school pupils says research by The Children’s Society.

The organisation is raising concerns that new uniform laws – introduced last autumn – which were designed to cap costs for families are still not doing enough to control uniform lists, with branded items or those with a logo pushing up prices.

What does the new law say?

The Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Act, which applies to England only, puts greater onus on schools to ensure the sale and supply of uniforms remains affordable.

Guidance for schools includes making sure second-hand uniforms or ‘swap shop’ systems are available, that branded items are kept to a minimum and that high street options or clothing from more than one supplier is permitted to ensure competition on price.

However, after the end of one school year under the new Act, The Children’s Society says its latest research suggests while some schools have made changes to help cut costs, too many continue to request branded items only available from specific suppliers.

A survey of more than 2,000 parents taken last month saw 45% admit that their school’s uniform policy had not been changed or updated as a result of the new law.

"With inflation and the cost of living eating into family budgets, we are disappointed that the affordability of school uniforms remains a significant financial burden for many families” said Mark Russell, chief executive of The Children's Society.

Household budgets are expected to remain under considerable pressure following the latest decision by the Bank of England to raise interest rates.

And earlier this week supermarkets were grilled by a committee of MPs over high food prices that campaigners say aren’t coming down despite some drops in wholesale costs.

While families faced with buying branded items or clothing with a school logo may have little choice of supplier – stiff competition among supermarket school uniform suppliers is anticipated as the new school year edges closer.

Aldi has already confirmed it is bringing back its popular £5 school uniform bundle, which it is introducing next month alongside a price match guarantee to ‘help parents in light of the ongoing cost of living crisis’.

The deal includes two polo shirts, one sweatshirt, and either trousers or a pleated skirt for £5 and comes in a variety of traditional uniform colours and sizes aged four to 12.

Charity concerns

The Children’s Society says any family struggling with the cost of uniform should speak with the school and its governors - while Action for Children said parents should study carefully uniform policies before purchasing.

And with school attendance continuing to struggle since the pandemic – particularly among teenagers – the Children’s Commissioner for England is concerned that high uniform costs could stop some children coming to school.

In a tweet the office for Rachel de Souza wrote: “ It’s essentual we do everything to tackle this so children don’t face extra barriers to attendance.”

The Department for Education says it is working with schools and bodies to make sure uniform costs are ‘reasonable’.