Minister urges school to cut uniform costs

Education minister David Laws is expected to urge schools in England to cut the cost of school uniform.

03:52 16 September 2013

With uniform costs going too high and with the current economic condition, Education Minister David Laws will urge the school to help hard-pressed parents by cutting uniform cost at the Lib Dem conference in Glasgow. He said that this will happen by ending the use of a single-uniform supplier as this will enable parents to shop around. 

 

The minister said: "The fact for example that it is too easy for schools to have these single supplier arrangements where parents can end up paying more than they need to.

 

"And there are also things that we feel we should get rid of.” 

 

"For example, it's possible at the moment to have cash back arrangements where schools can have these arrangements with single suppliers and in return get some of the profit from the business."

 

However, the biggest teaching union said that legislation is needed to ensure that schools will adhere to the order. Chris Keates, general secretary of NASUWT – the largest teachers’ union, said: "This announcement largely repeats the guidance the Office of Fair Trading gave in a letter it sent to all schools last year, which many of them ignored.”

 

"If the Liberal Democrats are serious about this issue they need to commit to issuing statutory guidance rather than weak advice."