Subject:

Reduce the Costs of Secondary School Uniform in Brighton & Hove - Petition for Debate

Date of Meeting:

17 December 2020

Report of:

Executive Lead Officer for Strategy, Governance & Law

Contact Officer:

Name:

Mark Wall

Tel:

01273 291006

 

E-mail:

mark.wall@brighton-hove.gov.uk

Wards Affected:

 

All

 

For General Release

 

 

1.      SUMMARY AND POLICY CONTEXT:

 

1.1      Under the Council’s Petition Scheme if a petition contains more than 1,250 signatures and is not petition requesting officer evidence, it will be debated by the Full Council.

 

1.2      The e-petition has resulted in triggering a debate at the council meeting, having exceeded the threshold with a total of 1,495 signatures confirmed at the time of printing the report.

 

2.      RECOMMENDATIONS:

 

2.1      That the petition is noted and referred to the Children, Young People & Skills Committee for consideration.

 

3.       RELEVANT BACKGROUND INFORMATION / CHRONOLOGY OF KEY EVENTS:

         

3.1      The Petition:

Reduce the Costs of Secondary School Uniform in Brighton & Hove

 

In our city, we already had some areas with high levels of child poverty. The economic impacts of the COVID crisis have made this situation even worse. 33,000 people were furloughed in our city and by June 2019 the numbers of households on Universal Credit had risen from 5,860 in February 2019  to 14,180 in May 2019. 

 

Secondary schools in Brighton and Hove have branded items which you can only source from a single supplier. My daughter's school have branded PE socks at £7 a pair, white polo neck shirts with a tiny logo at £8.95 (available for £4 on the high street without the logo). Without the branding you can save nearly £40. In addition, people need to have multiple items such as 2 or 3 polo necks to send their kids to school clean and smart. 

 

We challenge the heads to reduce the number of items with branding on to save hard pressed families money. No new uniform should cost more than £55 for mandatory items. 

 

Poverty means that every penny spent on uniform is taken from something else that child needs. Providing discounts using pupil premium helps, but that could be spent on enrichment such as free school trips.

 

          Please listen to the city's families and act. 

 

          Lead Petitioner – Emma Daniel

         

          Additional Information:

          None.

 

4.      PROCEDURE:

 

4.1      The petition will be debated at the Council meeting in accordance with the agreed protocol:

         

(i)        The Lead petitioner will be invited by the Mayor to present the petition and will have up to 3 minutes in which to outline the prayer of the petition and confirm the number of signatures;

 

(ii)       The Mayor will then open the matter up for debate by councillors for period of 15 minutes and will first call on the relevant Committee Chair to respond to the petition and move a proposed response.  The Mayor will then call on those councillors who have indicated a desire to speak in the matter, before calling on the relevant Committee Chair to respond to the debate;

 

(iii)      An amendment to the recommendation in paragraph 2.1 of the report or to add additional recommendations should be submitted by 10.00am on the day of the meeting; otherwise it will be subject to the Mayor’s discretion as to being appropriate.  Any such amendment will need to be formally moved and seconded at the meeting;

 

(iv)      After the 15 minutes set aside for the debate, the Mayor will then formally put:

 

(a) Any amendments in the order in which they are moved, and


(b) The substantive recommendation(s) as amended (if amended).