School leader tells of 'heartbreaking' poverty rise

The leader of an education trust that runs 12 schools across East Yorkshire has said child poverty is increasing significantly.

Education Alliance chief executive Jonny Uttley said some children were living in “heartbreaking” situations, lacking proper clothing and coming to school hungry.

Teachers had also reported taking home pupils' dirty PE kits to wash, he said.

The government said it had doubled the number of free school meals since 2010.

The Education Alliance Multi Academy Trust runs four secondary schools, seven primary schools and an alternative provision.

Mr Uttley said the role of schools had changed in recent years and that teachers were on the front line of the cost-of-living crisis.

He told the BBC's Politics North: “You see young people who we know are coming to school without breakfast or without proper food for their lunch.

"We've seen a rise in people in the winter without proper winter clothing.”

The trust has tried to bring down the cost of uniforms by getting rid of branded clothing and supports families that cannot afford uniforms, but he said: “You still see some really quite heartbreaking situations; young people who are coming to school without washed PE kits, so I know of a number of young people in our schools where the teachers actually hold their kit and take it home and wash it.

“This is just normal now, and it shouldn't be."

Last month a report from the Child of the North campaign and Centre for Young Lives said a new government plan was needed to support schools to reduce the impact of poverty.

The author of that report, Dr Charmele Ayadurai, said: “It is not enough to raise children’s aspirations through education alone without poverty-proofing schools, narrowing the gaps in attainment, or by allowing children to sleep in a cold bedroom or study on an empty stomach.

"Our children are the hope for the future."

The government said: “We have extended eligibility for free school meals to more groups of children than any other government over the past half a century and have doubled the number of free school meals since 2010 from just one sixth to more than one third.

“Furthermore, there are generous protections in place to ensure that children who need it keep their free school meal entitlement even if their household circumstances change.

“We continue to support people with cost-of-living support worth an average of £3,800 per household, and as inflation continues to come down, we are rewarding hard work by raising the National Living Wage and cutting taxes, and our Back to Work Plan will break down barriers for over a million people to find, stay and succeed in work.”

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