Universal school uniform grant to help thousands in Tower Hamlets

About 7,000 families in east London are set to benefit from a council’s universal school uniform grant.

The £150 will be available to children who are entering their first year of primary or secondary school, if their families have a household income of £50,350 or less.

Lutfur Rahman, mayor of Tower Hamlets, said it would “go some way” to support children in the borough, while Mohi, a local parent, said school uniform costs were a “matter of worry” for himself and his family.

It comes as the government’s Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill looks to limit the number of branded uniform items a school can require, to ease the financial burden on parents.

“I’m working in a solicitor’s, but you know, day by day our costs and expenses are really high,” Mohi said.

“As a parent, we always think ahead. So [uniforms] is something that is a matter of worry for me and my family.”

The head of London Enterprise Academy said its school uniform costs were more than £200, but that they supplied some items to students free of charge.

“I realise it’s a very expensive time in August for parents, so as a school, since we opened, we subsidised the uniform,” its principal Ashid Ali said.

“All of our students will get a free PE kit when they join our school, and when they move to Year 10, we have always provided free blazers, as the children are growing up.”

Suraia, a student at the school, said when pupils felt “inferior” to their peers because of their clothing, it affected “literally everything”, including their education.

Tower Hamlets Council announced the school universal uniform grant earlier this year.

Mr Rahman said: “It will go some way in supporting our youngsters at primary school and when they go into secondary school.

“Giving them some financial help, some 7,000 children in a year will be supported.”

The City of London offers grants to families that earn under £7,400 or are on benefits, while Westminster City Council provides a grant to families eligible for free school meals. Wandsworth Council offered a voucher scheme.

To try to reduce costs for everyone, the government is proposing a limit of three branded uniform items at primary school and four at secondary.

“This means, for the first time, no school in England will be able to require unnecessarily large numbers of branded items, so no parent will be unfairly disadvantaged,” a spokesperson for the Department for Education said.