Cost of living crisis means many Norfolk families will struggle to afford school uniforms
Inflation has climbed to over nine per cent, the highest it's been since 1982
With the summer flying by and the cost of living crisis continuing to bite, it's feared many families across Norfolk will struggle to afford new school uniforms.
With the latest available data from End Child Poverty showing that around a third of children are living in poverty, across the majority of the county.
While inflation has climbed to over nine per cent, the highest it's been since 1982.
"We have got to get money directly to those who are struggling now"
Imran Hussain is from Action for Children - which has an Early Childhood and Family Service in Norwich.
He says the Government needs to do more now, before a new Prime Minister is installed: "We have got to increase Universal Credit, the levels of it are just too low for people to live on. We needed targeted support for children in low income families.
"When austerity cuts were made, children's benefits effectively got cut and when people are talking about extra support for families now, children's benefits are being ignored- so we have got to get money directly to those who are struggling now, to help them cope.
"Inflation has not peaked. All the independent forecasts are that it will go higher and hit double digits before the end of the year.
"The things that families need to spend money on, food and fuel, we are going to see them rise further and fast.
"The rest of the year doesn't look great in terms of the cost of living, which is why the Government needs to act now."
"This is a really tough time for parents and we feel the Government need to go a lot further"
Mr Hussain told us that this is all having a range of negative impacts, with some likely to be affected at the till more than others: "When we all look back at our childhoods, the summers were the best bits of our childhood- this summer there are going to be lots of children he's summers are going to be affected by poverty, money worries and then worrying about their parents who are worried about money.
"This is a really tough time for parents and we feel the Government need to go a lot further.
"Some schools are great, they make sure their pick a uniform that's available to buy in supermarkets- generic black trousers and black skirts.
"But others will insist on clothing that you can only get in specialised outlets. That's a quite big out-goings for parents and then there's the case of them needing to buy new shoes, winter coats which are big issues. But that's before utility bills go up further in October."
Help with energy
It comes as the Government's announced today that all households in England, Scotland and Wales will receive ÂŁ400 in energy bill discounts from October.
The support will be issued in six instalments over six months to some 29 million households.
Business and Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said: “People across the country are understandably worried about the global rise in energy costs, and the pressure this is placing on everyday bills.
“While no government can control global gas prices, we have a responsibility to step in where we can and this significant £400 discount on energy bills we’re providing will go some way to help millions of families over the colder months.”