Debate contribution: School Uniforms: Affordability

Debate contribution by Miss Nuala McAllister on 5 March 2024.

MLA

Miss Nuala McAllister

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

5 March 2024

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

School Uniforms: Affordability

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4252819

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I thank the Minister for his response just before the lunch break. I want to point to some of the specific issues that were highlighted in the debate by many Members throughout the Chamber. Before I do that, however, I want to take a moment to describe what we all know as a school uniform and what is seen as a standard school uniform. We all know that a young child usually wears a uniform comprising a shirt and tie, looking like they are going off to an interview. At the age of four, they sit at a desk for six hours a day, with a scratchy jumper and tight trousers on. They are little kids, who were used to running about in the nursery playground for four hours, but they are sat at a desk for six hours in their little school tie, a jumper, skirts or pinafores. That is not really the image that we think of when we think of kids. We think of laughter, fun and innocence. The child should not be part of the school uniform; rather, the school uniform should be part of the child and complement what it is that they do in school and, most importantly, it should be comfortable. Many Members noted the expense for parents but also the stress on the children that that causes. Some Members expressed concern about that, and I share that concern. No child should be stressed by the financial circumstances that their parents find themselves in because of the burdens placed on them with the expense of school uniforms. We all agree that the school uniform grant is not sufficient and that it should have been updated many years ago. The Minister said that he was one of five children that his parents had to find school uniforms for. I can top that, Minister: I am one of eight children.

At one point, my parents had to find uniforms for six different post-primary schools. We all know that we have to buy blazers, jumpers and PE kits. It is simply unaffordable; it was unaffordable 20 years ago when I was at school, and it is still unaffordable today. As has been highlighted by MLAs, it is often getting worse. Another issue that I want to address, which other MLAs shared, is the idea of branded PE uniforms. I make reference to Mike Nesbitt's comments around branding that, if the school wants a branded PE uniform to be worn, why should the school not pay for it or not have a wardrobe of that PE uniform? If a particular brand wants to be shown on a school uniform, why does it not pay for that through school sponsorship? Why place the burden on a child? It exacerbates the problem that we have with division in our school system. We all know that our schools are divided. They are not integrated on a true basis, and I am not talking just about religion. I am talking about academia and about a financial set point. Children who come from families that can afford it will receive school tuition and are more likely to go to a grammar school. Families that can afford it will be able to afford the school uniform and the branded PE gear, and their children will go on to play for the school sports team, whether that be football or rugby. If branded PE gear is required, the families that will be able to afford it will more than likely be the ones that will opt for it. I have heard everyone in the Chamber agree with that today, and I listened to the example provided by Danny Baker about the family that had three children, one of whom was a child who attended a special needs school. That is an important issue to reflect on, because what uniforms surely are not is inclusive. When we talk to children about reasons that they are not happy with their school uniform, we hear that it is not about getting rid of the school uniform in its entirety. Rather, it is about comfort. Given that a lot of SEN children, many of whom attend mainstream schools, have sensory issues, are our school uniforms built for purpose to enable those kids to feel comfortable? There was some focus on the add-ons to school uniforms, and I will expand a little bit on that. Once parents purchase a school uniform and a PE uniform, there is then the idea of a scarf and a coat. To be perfectly honest, in this day and age, not being allowed to wear a scarf or a coat to school unless it has school branding is a disgrace. When the weather is cold, we need to ensure that parents can provide their children with anything. I will touch on a few of the things that the Minister said. I welcome his points about ensuring that affordability can work for parents.

One thing that I want to highlight is the fact that inclusivity was missing from the Minister's comments. I want to ensure that, in the consultation, he includes inclusivity. I am glad to hear —

— that he is including the cap as well.

872 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 09:50 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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