Many schools want children to wear uniforms branded with the school logo
By Emma Clifford Bell
BBC Scotland cost of living producer
As the summer holidays draw to a close, some parents feel under pressure to buy sweatshirts, blazers and gym bags embroidered with their school’s emblem.
“The school likes you to have the logo,” says mother-of-two Mhairi.
She says she has bought cheaper items from supermarkets and has some hand-me-down items for her primary school-age children.
“I’ve still managed to spend almost £100 at the official school shop just to buy a cardigan, four polo shirts and the PE kit,” Mhairi says.
“Someone has given me a blazer this year, which means that I don’t have to spend the £80 or £90 which some other people are paying.”
Local councils and individual schools decide on uniform policy at a local level – with no legal requirement in Scotland to wear it.
Mhairi says parents feel pressured into buying items embroidered with the school logo
But Mhairi, who lives in West Dunbartonshire, says parents still feel pressured into buying items embroidered with the school logo from suppliers suggested by schools.
“It makes me feel a wee bit nervous as a parent that someone might judge my parenting or judge my child for not looking quite as smart as everybody else,” she says.
“I know from experience where my child’s gone in with the yellow supermarket polo shirt with no logo on it, and I think it does look a little bit shabby.”
With the price of an embroidered polo shirt at £12, Mhairi says she can buy eight unbranded ones for the same price.
She says it is tempting to opt for the cheaper items.
“If you spent £20 on a jumper and it goes missing in the first week, it’s quite upsetting as a parent,” Mhairi says.
“That has happened before.”
Sara Spencer from the Child Poverty Action Group encouraged all schools to consider the cost associated with branded uniforms
School clothing grants are available through local authorities in Scotland for those on the lowest incomes.
This is at least £120 per child of primary school age and £150 per child of secondary school age.
Those on certain benefits may also be able to claim a Best Start Grant School Age Payment of £294.70 to help with the costs of a child starting primary 1.
Sara Spencer, from the Child Poverty Action Group in Scotland (CPAG), says this is a huge help for some but there are lots of families on a low income who are not eligible and still struggle with the costs associated with school clothing.
“Parents say that if the school is asking for you to purchase something, they’re going to go to the ends of the earth to be able to do that”, she says.
“They cut corners on other essentials.”
Ms Spencer says lots of schools are aware of the challenges that parents are facing.
They are trying to make school uniform more affordable, she says, and some are getting rid of the need for branded items entirely.
Hashim Ahmed says parents want their kids to look nice and look professional when they go to school
Hashim Ahmed and his family have sold school-branded uniforms in the Greater Glasgow area for more than 30 years – with stores in East Kilbride and Newton Means.
“We regularly have grandparents coming in to buy uniforms for their grandchildren at the same store that they bought their own children’s,” he says.
The Blossoms School Wear owner says that although his products are more expensive, they last longer.
“We do focus on ensuring that our school uniform lasts the year as opposed to parents having to come in say at Christmas and New Year time and purchase more.”
The supplier embroiders school logos in-house on a range of products including jumpers, sweatshirts, polo shirts and school bags.
“There’s a lot of emphasis from the schools that they would like the uniform to be worn.
“A lot of parents do choose to have it because they want their children to be part of an educational environment where they’re the same as the person next to them.
“They want their kids to look nice and look professional when they go to school.”
Izzie Eriksen from Apparel Xchange is asking parents to think sustainably when kitting out their kids
There are various schemes offered by schools and charities across the country to help with the cost of going back to school such as uniform banks, blazer hiring and sharing second-hand items with others.
In Glasgow city centre, rails and rails of preloved kid’s clothing hang in a huge warehouse run by social enterprise, Apparel Xchange.
The group promotes the reuse, repair & recycling of clothing – including school uniforms.
It sells official logo-branded items for a fraction of the original cost.
“They sell like hot cakes,” says Izzie Eriksen, the managing director.
“They’re really popular because they’re so much cheaper than actually buying them new.”
Like CPAG, the organisation is a member of the Scottish government’s working group on school uniforms.
The Scottish government says it will issue new guidance for schools before the start of the school term in August next year.
A spokesman said: “We recognise that many families are facing real hardship as a result of the cost of living crisis and so more needs to be done to make uniforms more affordable.
“That is why we will be introducing new guidance on school uniforms based on what we have heard from a recent consultation.”
