Dear Parents and Carers
As the recently appointed Parent Governor for SEND and Inclusion, I would like to personally extend my thanks to those of you who took the time to complete the recent survey on school uniform. I hope that all parents and carers have now had the opportunity to read the consultation feedback and the changes that are being implemented by the school, which were shaped by the survey results and were communicated via the last school newsletter for Term 2 which you can find here Kesteven & Sleaford High School - Newsletters (kshs.uk)
At our recent Governor's meeting on 17 November, the Governing Body took time to review the survey results in detail, some further parental communication that had been received and to understand the rationale for the changes that have subsequently been put in place. We reviewed the pricing structure for the new uniform policy and were very pleased to note that positive adjustments have been made to ensure that the new policy provides improvements to both affordability and ease of accessibility to purchase most items. We also reviewed the procurement procedure that is in place to ensure the uniform suppliers selected and used by the school offer best value for money.
A small number of the school uniform items remain unique to our school and have been retained to ensure the strong sense of identity which is already successfully embedded in our school. We know from student feedback that this sense of belonging is important to our pupils, who are proud to be a part of our school community.
We agreed that the overall cost to purchase new uniform items represents good value for money for our parents and carers.
As part of our discussions, we noted that pre-loved items are already available for parents and carers to purchase - a scheme which is supported by our wonderful PTA. As a school very much focused on sustainability and eco-friendly initiatives, we encourage all parents to support a circular economy and consider pre-loved items when needing to source buying new or replacement items. As an additional benefit, all monies raised from the sale of pre-loved items are invested back into our school and go towards purchases which may not otherwise be possible. If you have any good quality used items of uniform that you are able to donate these would be gratefully received. Donated items can be brought into school by pupils and can be placed in the collection box outside the textile classrooms.
We did note that, at present, information on our uniform suppliers and links to purchase pre-loved items are not contained within the same area of the website and this is something which is being reviewed to ensure ease of accessibility to all relevant information for parents and carers going forward.
I would also like to take this opportunity to remind parents of pupils eligible to receive benefits related Pupil Premium funding, that you can access £100 per year in support which can be used towards the purchase of uniform or costs of transport. If your circumstances have changed recently you may wish to consider checking if your child/ren is eligible for this funding. You can apply online via the link below.
https://lcc/cloud.servelec-synergy.com/SynergyWeb/Parents/default.aspx
Finally, due to the current cost of living crisis, I understand that many families will be finding a tight squeeze on their finances. Please see below links to some information on where additional support can be found to support families who are struggling:
https://www.turn2us.org.uk/Benefit-guides/Emergency-Information/facing-an-unexpected-cost
https://www.n-kesteven.gov.uk/residents/council-tax-and-housing-benefit/council-tax-support-and-housing-benefits/cost-of-living-support
https://www.nclm.org.uk/community-larder
https://lincolnshirefoodpartnership.org/foodbanks/
Kind regards
Mrs A Barker
Parent Governor
