School uniforms: Public consultation launched on uniforms, including bringing in price cap

A public consultation has been launched on school uniform policies including whether a price cap should be introduced.

Education minister Paul Givan previously said he wanted to ensure no families are excluded from the school of their choice due to prohibitive costs.

The consultation will look at areas such as affordability, comfort and sustainability.

It will focus on two key areas - introducing statutory guidance and bringing in a cap on uniform costs.

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Launching the consultation, Mr Givan said: “School uniforms play an important part in the engagement of pupils with their school.

“I recognise that many schools in Northern Ireland follow the existing guidance and work hard to keep the costs of school uniforms as low as possible.

“However, I know that some schools continue to have uniform policies where certain items are expensive or restrictive in where parents or carers can buy a uniform.”

In England a new law mandating schools to remove unnecessary branded items from their uniform requirements recently came into effect.

But there is no such legislation in Northern Ireland.

Some low-income families qualify for a one-off payment towards uniform costs, but it only amounts to £43 for a primary school pupil and up to £67 for a secondary school pupil.

Mr Givan added: “At a time of growing pressure on family budgets, the cost of a school uniform should not be a factor that parents or carers need to consider when selecting which school they wish their child to attend.”

The consultation period runs to September 27.