Jersey charity set to give £11k in school uniform vouchers

A charity has said it could give away more than £11,000 in vouchers for uniforms for the new school year.

In 2021 Variety Jersey helped about 200 families, but it expects to surpass that amount this year.

The charity helps pay for uniforms for children going to primary school. Support for secondary school pupils is provided by the States of Jersey.

Chief Barker Sandra Auckland said the charity expected to help more people in 2022 due to the rising cost of living.

"It's more than once a year that they come to us for help because you know sometimes you see a child one minute they're sort of very tiny and the next minute they've grown so much and their trousers are halfway up their legs," she said.

"It is important that we're there to help."

The Government of Jersey says it provides a grant programme to help families afford secondary school uniforms.

It said 680 pupils were supported by the grant in 2021, which amounted to about £6,000.

"Ministers hope the mini-budget will make the cost-of-living rise a bit easier for families," a government spokesperson said.

Gareth Hughes, head teacher of Victoria College, said demand for second hand options was growing.

"They [children] grow incredibly quickly, it can be sometimes a year or two when they are out of their blazer so its really important there is a turnover of that uniform and that uniform has a good life span on it."

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