Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the affordability of school uniforms for people on low incomes.

It is for the governing body of a school (or an academy trust, in the case of academies) to decide whether there should be a school uniform policy, and if so, what it should be. It is also for the governing body to decide how the uniform should be sourced.

In 2015, the Department commissioned the ‘Cost of School Uniform Survey’ which provides the most recent information the Department holds on the cost of school uniform. The findings of the survey are available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/436576/RR474_Cost_of_school_uniform.pdf.

The cost of uniform should not act as a barrier to obtaining a good school place. No school uniform should be so expensive as to leave pupils or their families feeling unable to apply to, or attend, a school of their choice. The current guidance on uniform sets out that a school should ensure that its school uniform policy is fair and reasonable for all its students.

The Department’s guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-uniform.