Suffolk high school reports increasing numbers are using its second hand uniform shop
A report shows household finances have become increasingly stretched after an expensive summer holiday period
The headteacher of a high school in Suffolk says they're an increasing number of parents use their second-hand school uniform shop to buy clothes for their children.
The new academic year starts today, but a recent report has shown nearly 40% of parents don't know how they will pay for school supplies as household finances become increasingly stretched after an expensive summer holiday period.
We spoke to Julia Upton, the headteacher of Kesgrave High School, about their School Uniform Bank.
She told us they understand the pressures parents are facing which is why they have "lots of different support mechanisms for parents that might be struggling": "Particularly when students are starting school and when you're buying all that uniform afresh, it's a big outlay because it's lots of items and they're wearing them five days a week."
She went onto explain one of they ways in which they help to reduce costs to families: "It's about having a couple of suppliers to make sure that the uniform , if you are buying it new, it's competitively priced and you haven't just got that unique selling point (USP)."
She also said that the clothing bank has seen increase in the amount of people using their second-hand uniform shop: "As soon as it comes in, they do a clothing bank once a month and they're always inundated with parents coming to look at what's there.
"Then they're always putting out pleas for more donations, so it goes onto the shelf and goes out again very quickly."
The research in more detail
The research by Creditspring showed that many parents will be forced to borrow money to pay for these items, with many parents expecting to go into debt to pay for back-to-school supplies.
Four in ten (39%) parents say they will be reliant on credit products to buy back-to-school supplies – a fifth (20%) will be forced to turn to credit cards for back-to-school purchases.
Meanwhile, nearly 15% of parents will have to turn to their overdraft and 10% will need to use Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) products to fund essential school equipment.
A third of parents will be forced to raid savings pots to afford school uniforms and other equipment.
In addition, nearly 50% of parents say they are likely to cut spending on other essential items to be able to afford back-to-school supplies.
And nearly 60% expect back-to-school supplies to cost more this year than ever before.
High costs ahead of the new school term is leading to a third (34%) of parents admitting they would consider home-schooling their child to avoid these annual expenses.