free xtra benefits???

pipkin71

OP, if you go to your local council house, ask them for a school uniform grant form. Not all councils provide this. If yours don't, then ask them for a list of charities that provide grants that meet your circumstances - eg. single parent, or unemployed ect.

With the charity grants, they do ask that you get someone official to sign the form to confirm you are in need of assistance, but the head of your children's school may do that.

The grant here now is £50 towards the uniform. Some high schools also have their own fund for uniform assistance, and my friend's son was provided with one full uniform - one pair of trousers, one shirt, one jumper and one tie. Friend then used the £50 grant towards shoes and blazer.

Sometimes it is about asking, as these things are not generally advertised.

HTH

Pipkin xxxx

smithyjules

mitchaa wrote: »

Sorry but that is absoloute rubbish.

The only thing that determines where a child goes to school is the colour of his/her tie up my neck of the woods.

As long as they are dressed in black/grey trousers, white shirt, school tie and shoes, that is all they need.

Ive never heard the like of needing football and rugby boots, fleeces, tracksuits and god knows what else. Is that a need or an optional, there's a big difference. Not all kids like sport, i highly doubt that girls would need to fork out for football/rugby boots.

PE for us was dress as you please, in football tops, casual t-shirts whatever.

As were all the schools in my area.

Im 25, not 50, i left school 8-9yrs ago and i know the rules where i am have certainly not changed.

So your ''MOST'' schools is a tad misleading;)

Asda yesterday released a whole school uniform for the pricely sum of £4, yes you read it correctly £4.

They do not need to be expensive especially on 4/5/6 yr old primary school children.

Crikey I'm not sure i've ever heard such a rude poster-just wondered if you have any friends in the real world-i would never allow anyone in my life to be rude to me like you have to posters on here.Charming!

Anyway-I am 26 and a common old Essex girl! But my secondary school required my parents to by me a school blazer, school jumpers, school tie, school swimming costume, school swimming hat, school filofax, AND... Wait for it...Girls had to have school netball skirts, hockey socks, and school PE knickers!!!!no i can't say i did rugby and whether i liked sports or not didn't come into it!!!National Curriculum you see!!!

My mum once told me "never judge someone til you've walked a mile in their shoes" if only others felt this way.

Anyway i just wanted to offer support to the OP - can't help with the school uniform but do you get Healthy Start Vouchers??These help towards fruit and veg. Best wishes

stef240377

If school uniform is compulsory and must have all the logos printed on each item then in my area the school get a set amount from the government to help parents on benefits meet the ever increasing costs. Here you have to write a letter to the school bursar explaining your situation, from the free school meal entitlement they will see your eligbility and either send a cheque for a small amount to help or send a credit voucher to a designated uniform supplier in your area and you can them go and pick items to the value.

With regards to school trips at junior school where there is a P.T.A. money is also set aside to help out, if no P.T.A like my sons previous school the head teacher will allow weekly payments to be made even if this goes on past the trip date as they dont like children to be outcasts and feel embarrased by their parents finances. High school is different ALL trips must be paid for. My daughters high school have now started to do the weekly budgeting scheme especially where a trip asks for daft amounts of money. As much as i would like my children to go on some of the foreign trips they do they appreciate that with three of them all in high school this just isnt going to happen.

lighton

stef240377 wrote: »

If school uniform is compulsory and must have all the logos printed on each item then in my area the school get a set amount from the government to help parents on benefits meet the ever increasing costs. Here you have to write a letter to the school bursar explaining your situation, from the free school meal entitlement they will see your eligbility and either send a cheque for a small amount to help or send a credit voucher to a designated uniform supplier in your area and you can them go and pick items to the value.

With regards to school trips at junior school where there is a P.T.A. money is also set aside to help out, if no P.T.A like my sons previous school the head teacher will allow weekly payments to be made even if this goes on past the trip date as they dont like children to be outcasts and feel embarrased by their parents finances. High school is different ALL trips must be paid for. My daughters high school have now started to do the weekly budgeting scheme especially where a trip asks for daft amounts of money. As much as i would like my children to go on some of the foreign trips they do they appreciate that with three of them all in high school this just isnt going to happen.

Good answer i agree with you, my parTner was out of work for 5 monhs until 2 weeks ago , i managed to pay for DAY trips etc my mum helped a bit , but with kids they do need to learn from an early age some things are not possible(like expensive school hloidays abroad) and if you cant afford it they cant go , its not fair i know but im affraid they do need to learn that not everything is possible.

Paparika

mitchaa wrote: »

Absoloute ludicrous example of how much a school uniform costs:rolleyes:

I must be seeing things when i shop in tescos and note how cheap a school uniform is. You can certainly dress 2 children to go to school for well under £100.

You will also learn that the children in question are primary school age.

Dont try and kid people as to how much things cost. Your example is absoloute ridiculous. Football and rugby shirts and boots, tracksuits, locker fees, school trips and school funds:rotfl:

Never had any of these as compulsory when i was at school.

Hmmm well me being a single mum to a 13 year old boy would not manage, I can't trot off to tesco's or asda for his school uniform, not my choice, its school rule i have to stick to, and yes he has rugby shirts, pe shirts, dance shirts etc, and they all need to be in his house colours and logos and its only available at John Lewis's.

although a bit of MS is that his rugby shirt is going to be used for the 3 year running thankfully.

I was on IS a few years ago and the pitance you get is a struggle to keep going, i was paying the ex husbands debts he left me with and all the bills, yes housing benefit and council tax benefit helped but, when the old man don't pay towards his child, you have to rob peter to pay paul.

and i only bought own brand items to save money, but tbh unless you've been in the situation you really can't judge. Everyone has differenet reasons for being a single parent and on IS.
Your posts were very rude, your posts were like you were talking down to the OP, think about the situation they are in before you judge. They were only asking for advice not a talking down to

something_girl

I would love to know where these secondary schools are, that allow Tesco school uniforms and not the set kit list we are all given, my youngest starts secondary school in September and the list is enormous AND compulsory. Luckily there is a designated uniform shop in the town we live, talk about a monopoly!

Scousebird_2

mitchaa wrote: »

Absoloute ludicrous example of how much a school uniform costs:rolleyes:

I must be seeing things when i shop in tescos and note how cheap a school uniform is. You can certainly dress 2 children to go to school for well under £100.

You will also learn that the children in question are primary school age.

Dont try and kid people as to how much things cost. Your example is absoloute ridiculous. Football and rugby shirts and boots, tracksuits, locker fees, school trips and school funds:rotfl:

Never had any of these as compulsory when i was at school.

I remember 6 yrs ago, my Nan had to pay out for me at high school-

Jumper x2 £15 each
Shirts approx £10 per term (x4 terms)
Pants again about £10 per term (about 4 pairs a school year)
Tie-£5
Compulsory Navy Shorts for PE=£5
Gym Skirt-£10
Gym T-Shirt with logo-£10
Trainers (approx £20x2 over year unless you wanted to get bullied for wearing trainies from the market)
And them underwear-I am a big girl up top so over the year i'd prob end up buying £50-80 worth of Bra's and then underwear I wont count.
School Shoes-about £20x3 for whole school year

Total approx £300!!
PER SCHOOL YEAR!!

So it isn't cheap at all-nowerdays it's a fortune and looking back-I had it cheap so I can understand where a lot of parents are coming from here with costs. And now the school grant has gone it's bloody hard to cope. I am not a parent myself but I am the eldest of 6 and my Mum still has 3 in education and it still cripples her-she is on benefits and I left home 6 years ago-but every year she struggles to buy all the school branded stuff like Blazers (£25-30 a time) and then all the gym stuff. It's not easy at all.

Just wanted to highlight the costs 6 years ago in comparison to now in defense of other Mothers on here who are highlighting how difficult it is to buy uniforms.

Oh and in response to Mitchaa's comment about ASDA announcing a full uniform for £4-I challenge you to go buy it-scrutinise the stitching-shove it through the wash a couple of times (maybe 2 or 3) and then put it on a child and see how long it lasts-I give it a fortnight-month at the most. I lost count of the amount of times I bent down to pick up my pen or to pick up my shool bag (oh yeah-there's another tenner) my ASDA trousers split and my @rse or crotch of my knickers were on show! Lol!! Was a bit of a chubby lass! Straight in the bin when I got home unless my Nan's could salvage them with a quick stitch!

You indicated 4/5/6 yr olds-trying washing PVA glue or acrylic paint off cheap fabric uniforms-it's bloody pointless because it still leaves a mark or damages the uniform-and little lads like to come home covered in mud and grass from playing army or scrapping with their mates so £4 uniforms won't last a whole school year!

Then I started going to New Look where I paid double but I got more wear-but this cost more and I paid for it out of my wages from the local chippy and my pot washing job!

bestpud

woodbine wrote: »

I have to ask myself why someone with your attitude to benefits bothers posting on this forum,generally most of us are here to help and advise others,unlike yourself who seems intent on crticising the system and those who rely on it.
There are other areas of MSE where you can vent your anger at the system this isnt the place for it.:mad:

I often wonder that too, but on this particular point, I think mitchaa is actually correct - it is the 'extras' that cause problems for people on income support. But then that is right imo - basic IS should only provide the essentials. We have alternative benefits for people who are ill long term or have a disability for example - IS should be a stop gap.

However, on the uniform issue mitchaa, you must be living on a different planet, as the situation you have described is NOT the norm!

I went to secondary in the eighties and even then ties were not the only difference betwen schools. We had to buy yellow checked blouses directly from the school and they were not cheap (just one of the standard secondaries in the area - nothing speacial about it either!!) It has only got worse since too!

I'm not saying it can't be bought with IS money, as it can with a little forward planning (which most of us have to do!), but you are wrong to suggest it is cheap once they get to secondary school - it simply is not.

ally67_2

most uniform you can get cheap these days my sons school you have to buy the jumper from the school £15.OO rugby shirt is £22.oo from local shorts shop and scocks £6.99 as they are school colours

mitchaa

Scousebird wrote: »

I remember 6 yrs ago, my Nan had to pay out for me at high school-

Jumper x2 £15 each
Shirts approx £10 per term (x4 terms)
Pants again about £10 per term (about 4 pairs a school year)
Tie-£5
Compulsory Navy Shorts for PE=£5
Gym Skirt-£10
Gym T-Shirt with logo-£10
Trainers (approx £20x2 over year unless you wanted to get bullied for wearing trainies from the market)
And them underwear-I am a big girl up top so over the year i'd prob end up buying £50-80 worth of Bra's and then underwear I wont count.
School Shoes-about £20x3 for whole school year

Total approx £300!!
PER SCHOOL YEAR!!

I think slight exaggerations into what is required:rolleyes:

Why did you need a new shirt every term? The time between say when you go back after summer to the time you get off in October, or that again to xmas is only around 6-7wks at a time. Why would you need a new shirt so often? You can buy packs of 3 for around £10 that will do you the whole year.

Again, you do not require a new pair of shoes 3x a year. That is ludicrous, 1 pair of good shoes will do you a year no problem. Why are you including bras? That has nothing to do with school, just day to day living.

No idea what pants are, but again if you are a boy 1 pair of school trousers can easily last 1 year.