The cost took up more than half of Karyssa Bates’ Universal Credit payment, and she says her kids are paying the price
Karyssa Bates is calling for school uniforms to be abolished or made substantially cheaper after spending over £900 to suit up her four children for the new school year. The mum-of-four revealed the financial cost has put her family’s Christmas on the line, while the emotional toll is also undeniable.
Knowing she’s not the only parent facing this struggle, Karyssa shared her story with NeedToKnow, adding: “I think uniforms should be abolished because of the whole expense. It should just be a jumper and trousers or skirts and a polo shirt.
“Standard PE kits you can buy from supermarkets to make things cheaper, rather than telling parents they need to purchase clothing with the logo on. If there were a swap shop near me, I’d be so grateful.
“But there isn’t. And I’m left being limited on what I can do as I have this cost in the back of my mind constantly. The children are the ones really suffering, and I hate disappointing them because of some outfit.”
Karyssa is “sick with worry” over the cost she’s had to cover this year. She had started saving for the expense last Crhistmas, putting £75 a month aside into a uniform pot to help make ends meet but it hasn’t been enough to save their Christmas.
She said: “It’s had such a huge emotional impact; I feel like I’m failing as a mum. I wasn’t able to get them everything they asked for at Christmas last year, and I won’t be able to do that again – if anything at all.”
The stay-at-home mum has two children in secondary school along with twins in primary school. The cost of uniforms this year was more than half of her £1,700 monthly Universal Credit payment.
With food bills and other necessities for the household totally at £1,525, the costof the uniforms has forced Karyssa to cut back wherever possible especially if any of her four children happen to have a growth spurt or damage their uniform.
She said: “I do cheaper food shops where I can and I don’t add any extras such as sweets or other treats. I take them on fewer days out – or not at all.
“They only get general clothing if bought as presents for birthdays and Christmas from family. I can’t afford to get them anything new. There just isn’t any spare money left over for anything else.”
It’s estimated that a school uniform now costs £442 for a child in secondary school and £343 for those in primary. This is a sharp rise from just £96.24 per student just two years ago, according to the Schoolwear Association.
Labour has confirmed that the number of branded school uniform items will be limited from September 2026 as part of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. This will help to cut down the cost of school uniforms.