Parents encouraged to take up help towards cost of school uniform
Over the summer holidays The Harpur Trust is encouraging parents whose children are eligible for free school meals to access the support they are entitled to, through its annual School Uniform Scheme.
The Trust provides £50 towards the cost of a uniform for children who live in Bedford Borough and are changing from a primary school to a state secondary school in the Borough.
Lucy Bardner, Community Programmes Director, said: “Starting secondary school is an exciting milestone, but we understand that it can also be a challenging time for families facing additional expenses. We help hundreds of low-income families each year in Bedford Borough with the cost of school uniform to help them prepare for secondary education.
“By alleviating some of the school uniform expense, we hope to ease the transition for families and ensure that every child feels a sense of belonging and pride as they step into their new school environment and start their secondary school journey with confidence. It’s part of our commitment to supporting children and families in our community.
“Last year we had a large number of families eligible to take up the scheme that didn’t, which is hard to understand in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis. So, to make the scheme as accessible as possible to the families who need the support, we’re issuing schools with information leaflets in a variety of community languages.
“The secondary school the child is due to attend will contact eligible families, but if you qualify and you haven’t heard anything as the summer holidays approach, we suggest you reach out to the secondary school reception and ask for details.”
The School Uniform Scheme is part of the wider efforts of The Harpur Trust to support the local community and help all children to thrive and nurture their potential. The main way The Trust does this is through the Grants Programme, which gives over £1.2 m each year in grants to charities and community groups which run projects to help improve the lives of others.
Other initiatives include the Accelerator Programme, which works with schools to support 0- to-11-year-olds from lower income families to make more rapid progress in education, helping to narrow the attainment gap between children on free school meals and their better off peers.
The Trust also helps students from low-income families with university bursaries and is a founding partner of Bedford Giving, hosting the movement which has been set up to create a brighter future for children and young people in the Borough.
To find out more about the School Uniform Support Scheme visit our school uniform page.