27/05/2026
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I am absolutely appalled that Reform-run Wakefield Council has decided to significantly cut the school uniform voucher scheme by Β£1.3m so that it will no longer support every child.
Over the past few months, as a councillor representing a working-class community, I have heard from family after family about the positive difference this fund would make during an incredibly difficult year. Many families will already have budgeted these vouchers into their summer plans. I grew up in Normanton, Iβm a local school governor - I know what it looks like when our local residents are let down.
This decision is a direct blow to hard-working families across our district - families who often miss out on financial support despite doing everything right. Supporting those families was the whole purpose of this fund.
It is also important to remember that this school uniform fund was not paid for through council tax. It came from a one-off fund following the dissolution of Bridge Homes, which provided the Council with a significant amount of additional money. The scheme was fully budgeted for and ready to go.
Working families are under enormous pressure because of the rising cost of living, and for many parents, school uniforms are a major expense. Any support that helps children and families should be protected and not questioned or taken away.
This decision sends entirely the wrong message to local families. Not everyone who struggles is out of work. Many parents work incredibly hard every single day and still find it difficult to make ends meet. Those families deserve support too.
Supporting children should never be political - it should be common sense. Both this decision and the decision to scrap the Corporate Parenting Committee send completely the wrong message to our children and young people.
Our young people deserve better than this, and so do the hard-working families across Normanton.
