Millionaire businesswoman Kate Stewart has called for a major shake-up on school uniforms as she says the prices of the garments are "just not sustainable".
The mum-of-four, who made her first million by the age of 26 and owns The Sandon Complex in Anfield, said the ongoing cost of living crisis made forking out hundreds of pounds for school uniforms an impossibility for many low-income families.
She said: “Central government sets out that every child has to wear a school uniform, but it's devolved to local government and the board of governors at any given school to decide what that uniform shall be. Many schools are working with just one shop or chain who then has the monopoly on the branded uniform displaying the logo for that school. Branded blazers can cost over £100 and even jumpers can cost £30 so in these times it's often not possible for lower income families to afford these items. We totally agree that children should wear uniforms to school but we disagree with branding, logos and the monopolised approach and policies."
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She proposed a simple solution to the problem, calling on schools to change their uniform policies and simplify their clothing rules, which would allow parents to buy a more affordable uniform from high street shops.
Kate, who grew up in Clubmoor, said: "All I am asking schools to do is to change their uniform policies to allow plain or unbranded uniforms as an alternative. We believe parents should be able to buy the entire school uniform from high street shops or supermarkets, many of which have a good range of generic and affordable uniforms.
"Schools could provide parents with iron-on badges if they want the uniforms to be branded or display school logos. Some items, like blazers, aren’t just expensive to buy or replace if lost, but they are also expensive to maintain as they might be made from materials like wool and maybe can only be dry cleaned.
"It's just not sustainable for families anymore to be able to do that if they even could in the first place. We need to make school uniforms more affordable and more accessible and just help out those who need it most. It’s often the children that are suffering and I cannot just sit back and watch.”
Kate's call for change is the latest in her efforts to combat the cost of living crisis in Liverpool, as she recently opened The Sandon Complex to around 2,000 local families, offering free meals, heat, and entertainment.
She is also continuing her Kids School Uniform appeal, which last year funded the donation of 250 uniforms to children in the city's most deprived areas.
She said: "The schools are ordering the parents to go to one shop who has the monopoly on that said school to buy the uniforms from them; blazers £100 to jumpers for £30, all with the school's logos all over them. And in these times it's not possible to parents on low income to afford these items. So what I'm asking schools to do is to drop down to plain uniforms.
"We totally agree with uniforms; we think it's right children wear school uniforms for school, but stop with the items that can just be bought from shops like Laser. Let parents go and buy uniforms in high street shops, likes of Tesco has the Sainsburys that all have affordable uniforms.
"You know if a child loses the blazer it's another £100. They are so expensive and the maintenance of them is expensive as well. You know the majority of them are woollen and you've got to have them dry cleaners. It's just not sustainable for families anymore to be able to do that."
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