Thank you for your correspondence of 4th February regarding the government’s school uniform guidance and its intention to place it on a statutory footing.

As you are aware, the Department currently publishes advisory guidance for schools to support them in formulating school uniform policies. The guidance makes clear that all schools should give cost the highest priority when formulating their uniform policies. It also states that exclusive single supplier contracts should be avoided unless regular tendering competitions are run where more than one supplier can compete for the contract and where best value for parents is secured. The guidance is clear that compulsory branded items should be kept to a minimum.

It has long been this Government’s intention to put school uniform guidance on a statutory footing and the Government is therefore pleased to support the Private Member’s Bill to ‘Make provision for guidance about the cost aspects of school uniform policies’ introduced to Parliament on 5th February 2020. This demonstrates the Government’s commitment to ensuring that school uniform costs are reasonable and as previously publicly stated – that the guidance on school uniform costs will be placed on a statutory footing at the earliest opportunity. In practical terms, that will mean a duty placed on the Secretary of State for Education to issue statutory guidance on this matter, to which schools must then have due regard.

I hope this reassures you of the Government’s position on this matter.

Thank you,

Department for Education