'Temporary' uniform bank still going two years on

Michaela Wilson set up the project in Colne

A temporary school uniform exchange set up to help people struggling with the cost of back to school clothes is still going, two years on.

Michaela Wilson started the Pendle In And Out Of School Project in Colne, Lancashire, after she realised her own son's PE kit alone was going to cost £128.

She said people could pick uniform up from the temporary market without having to ask for it.

The project allows people to "take what they need, and no one ever knows", she said.

People can drop off their unwanted uniform and collect items in different sizes

Ms Wilson said: "The cost of my son’s PE kit was £128 for a jersey, a t shirt and a pair of shorts and I thought, 'Surely there must be a better way of doing this’."

Items are dropped off at the town centre cafe which Ms Wilson runs, before being pressed and put out in the market.

Angela Fielden appreciates the recycling aspect of the system

Angela Fielden, who has used the service for her grandchildren, said it not only saves money, but there are also environmental benefits.

"Even though people are working, uniform is super expensive so I think it’s a fantastic idea," she said.

"It’s brilliant for recycling too, which as a family we’ve very into."

Councillor Ash Sutcliffe says the council providing a space for the service has benefits for both the authority and the uniform exchange

The site in the market is provided to the group for free.

Ash Sutcliffe, the local councillor on both Pendle Council and Lancashire County Council, said: "There’s multiple ways that this supports the community.

"One of them is driving footfall into an existing market that’s in a temporary position so that helps in terms of advertising and footfall generation but it’s providing a service that’s needed in the town so that’s always going to be valuable."

Last week, the BBC reported how a North West MP had called on the government to tighten the laws around branded school uniforms.

Labour's Mike Amesbury, who represents Runcorn and Helsby, said limiting the number of branded items parents had to buy would mean they could buy cheaper products from supermarkets and other retailers.

A spokesman for the Department for Education said the government planned to introduce a cap on branded items through the Children’s Wellbeing Bill.