To ask the Minister of Education, given the increasing price of branded PE kits being used by schools, whether she has any plans to review the Uniform Grant allocations to make uniforms affordable for families in receipt of benefits.

School uniform policies in Northern Ireland are a matter for individual schools to determine in association with guidance from the Department of Education.

In June 2018 the Department reissued guidance to all schools reminding them of the importance of keeping the costs of school uniforms to a minimum. The guidance advises schools to ensure that items are available ‘off the peg’ from a number of retail outlets so that the school uniform does not become a barrier for children from low income families attending the school. The guidance is available at https://www.education-ni.gov.uk/publications/circular-201104-guidance-schools-school-uniform-policy-revised-5-june-2018.

The Education Authority administers the payment of school uniform grants to support low income families with children in primary, post primary and special schools. The school uniform grant is not intended to cover the full cost of a uniform, rather it is designed to assist those in need with the cost of purchase.

Preparatory work has begun within the Department on a review of the free school meals (FSM) and uniform grant eligibility criteria. The purpose of this review to ensure that FSM and uniform grants are available to support the most vulnerable children in our society and the review will consider the current rates of uniform grant as a contribution to the cost of school uniforms. The review will consider options to extend the FSM and uniform grant criteria and the rate of uniform grant.

I am also aware of recent legislation that was introduced in England which included a price cap on Uniforms. We will consider this legislation and the potential to introduce similar legislation here, as part of the review.