Cost of living: Harlow uniform swap doubles sales in a year

This is the second year Harlow's uniform exchange has been open, and demand is even higher

A pop-up shop to help parents save money on school clothes said it had seen a huge increase in demand since last year.

The Community School Uniform Exchange, based in the Harvey Shopping Centre in Harlow, Essex, expected to sell 6,000 items over the summer.

That would be double last year's total.

The charity behind the scheme said family finances were being stretched by the cost of living crisis.

'Little things like that just help massively'

Elisha Blick's daughter is starting school in September

Elisha Blick's daughter is starting school in September.

"It's just a lifesaver. We could get her new shoes, so now she's got two pairs instead of one. Little things like that just help massively," said mum.

"We're back today to get some smaller sizes; now she's got a whole wardrobe.

"Everyone is so helpful. When I came in straight away they asked if I needed some help, and I was like 'yeah, this is our first year, we don't know what we're doing'."

The Children's Society told the BBC in June that, on average, parents spend £422 a year on secondary and £287 on primary uniforms, with items with school logos/badges costing more.

'It was a real shock how expensive it can get'

Ellie Marmon said branded school uniforms add up in cost

Ellie Marmon was shopping for her daughter's reception uniform.

"The school she's going to has the logo branded on absolutely everything, so when I was adding it up online on the local school uniform website it was coming out to £200. It was racking up quite a lot," she said.

"It was a real shock how expensive it can get."

Under the Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Act 2021, schools in England should be helping cut costs for parents. That could be by promoting cheaper second-hand uniform options or removing unnecessarily-branded items from their uniform lists.

"At the moment, like everybody, we're struggling with our gas bill, our electric bill, and everything like that. So, when I found this [the Uniform Exchange], the prices here just opened up a lot more money to start paying off those kind of bills," said Ms Marmon.

"Today is the first time I've come in here, and the range of stuff is unbelievable."

'We're the ones who foot the bill'

Both of Jonathan's children go to schools that require branded school uniforms

Jonathan Conlin came to the shop to donate used uniforms, and ended up picking out a top for his daughter's new school year.

"Considering the cost of inflation and everything going on at the moment, adding to the cost of the uniform is a bit of a joke," he said.

"Especially when they start ripping things when they don't need to, you know. It's just kids being kids, but, unfortunately, we're the ones who foot the bill."

The exchange currently only operates for one month a year, but they are considering opening at Christmas and Easter

The average cost per item at the shop is £1.00. That adds up to a saving of between £40-50,000 on school uniforms for parents and guardians across Harlow, the group said.

This is the project's second year.

'This town is really amazing'

Project manager Fernanda Champness said uniform donations had exceeded expectations

Fernanda Champness, project manager at the Uniform Exchange, said a lot more people were using the pop-up shop this year.

"We've been open three weeks so far, and we've already sold more than we did in five weeks last year, about 4,000 items so far," she said.

"We never thought donations would be a problem because this town is really amazing for that - we ended the shop last year with as much stock as when we started."

It has proved so popular with parents, they were now considering opening at Christmas and Easter as well.

"It has surpassed our expectations in terms of numbers of people coming in and buying. We've been really pleased."