School uniforms costing families over £1bn a year as Lib Dems call for price cap to tackle “cost of learning crisis”

EMBARGO: 22.30 Monday 21st April

As families across the country prepare for a return to school from the Easter break, research reveals that Liberal Democrat calls for a price cap on branded school uniform items could save families around £300m each year – up to 5 times what the Government says their own plans will achieve.

New analysis by the Liberal Democrats has revealed the true scale of the “cost of learning crisis” facing families, with parents facing a whopping £1 billion annual bill for branded school uniform items.

The party is calling for a cap on the price of branded items, as part of the Liberal Democrats’ ‘cost of learning’ rescue package – a raft of different measures binding together the party’s push to limit the cost of school uniforms with their longstanding campaign to expand free school meals provision for all children in poverty.

The proposed price cap would put a limit on the amount of money uniform suppliers can ask parents to shell out for costly branded uniform items. The Government is currently pushing through legislation to limit the number, rather than the price, of branded clothes families have to buy. But the Lib Dems say this “misses the mark” and will do little to address the serious pressure on the pockets of school families facing an enduring cost of living crisis, after a decade of the Conservatives “turning up their noses” at the thought of fixing the financial problems faced by families up and down the country.

The Government’s own impact assessment suggested that capping the number of uniform items would save families of primary school students £21 million in total, and secondary school families £52 million. But a cap on the asking price for uniform items could save families five times as much and protect them from uniform suppliers driving up the prices of fewer clothes. A notional cap of £75 for branded items per primary school student, for example, could save families £98 million annually – while capping secondary school uniform costs at £120 could reduce costs by up to £238 million.

Munira Wilson MP, Liberal Democrat Education, Children and Families Spokesperson, said: 

“For years the Conservatives turned their noses up at the thought of fixing the extortionate bills laid at the doors of families as the cost of learning rocketed up and up. 

“The Government’s right to try and address this – but their current approach misses the mark. We need tangible urgent action to protect the pennies in people’s pockets.

“Labour’s policy is a half-way house, tying school heads’ hands while still leaving families subject to huge price hikes for fewer school clothes.

“That’s why the Liberal Democrats are calling for a price cap on uniforms – to properly tackle costs for families as prices continue to spiral across the country.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

The Liberal Democrats are proposing a monetary cap on the price of branded uniform items that can be required by a school, to be set by the Secretary of State through annually reviewed regulations.

This would:

• Allow for greater flexibility for schools in setting their own uniform policy
• Not be inflationary as suppliers would not simply drive up the price of the 3 required items

The Liberal Democrat amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill is available here. It was considered and voted down by the Government during the Bill’s committee stage in the Commons.

The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill will be considered by the House of Lords in the coming weeks, where the Liberal Democrats intend to continue to push the Government on their proposals.