The Ministry of Education says it expects schools not to make significant profits from selling school uniforms.
Ministry hautu (leader) operations and integration Sean Teddy said the ministry understood that for some families, meeting back-to-school costs could be a struggle.
"It’s important there are no barriers to accessing education.
"The Government’s focus has been on reducing costs for parents, which has included the implementation of the school donations policy, Ka Ora, Ka Ako, healthy school lunches programme and period products in schools."
For example, the total investment in these initiatives for the 2022 school year was around $336million, he said.
"We know many schools are conscious of the costs and actively seek ways to minimise these costs, including school uniforms.
"It is our expectation that schools should not make significant profits from the sale of school uniforms."
The Commerce Commission provided guidance to schools on the provision of school uniforms and supplies.
School boards of trustees could make school rules on a wide range of matters, including uniforms.
"This means there is a variety of approaches to school uniforms and dress codes."
School boards decided on uniform requirements, including whether a uniform was required, the type of school uniform, where uniforms were sold and the price of uniforms, Mr Teddy said.
"Schools should make sure they do everything they can to make decisions on uniforms that minimise the costs and consult with their parent community before making decisions."
If parents had any concerns about a particular school’s requirements for uniforms, or the cost of their uniforms, they should formally raise these with their school board.
Schools could support parents in a number of ways.
That could include staggering payments for school uniforms and helping to make second-hand uniforms available or putting families in touch with other organisations that could help.
If a parent was unhappy with the school response, they could contact their local Te Mahau office for advice and support.
The ministry also had advice on their website for parents in terms of financial assistance.
In 2020 the ministry said it was investigating costs relating to school uniforms.
A spokeswoman said the ministry started looking into this but nothing was progressed as priorities changed, likely due to the pandemic.
simon.henderson@thestar.co.nz
