Children who can't afford branded school uniforms are left feeling 'shame and guilt', a councillor said. Coun Nazia Rehman, responsible for finance at Wigan Council, has launched a campaign urging schools to relax their uniform policy, limit their use of branded items from premium shops and provide stitch-on logos where possible.
In a cost of living crisis many families, even those of children who do not qualify for free school meals, are finding it difficult to pay for school uniforms, Coun Rehman told Wigan full council. She explained that parents spend on average £337 per year on school uniforms for each secondary school child and £315 on each primary school child.
“Madam mayor, the cost of school uniforms has long been recognised as a source of financial and emotional stress for families living on a low-income,” the Labour councillor told Wigan Town Hall on December 7.
