The parliamentary Social Affairs Committee has proposed that schools should retain the same uniforms for 10 years and that the uniforms should be available from more than one retailer.
In a report published for public consultation today the committee recommended that:
Schools should keep uniforms as simple as possible, including in the choice of colours and their design;
Uniforms should not be changed before a period of 10 years, so that more producers may be encouraged to enter the market;
A call for expressions of interest should be issued to determine who is interested in contracts to supply uniforms;
Schools should not be the ones to decide on the price of uniforms. The price should be set by the producer on the basis of the contract having been awarded to the lowest bid with the right quality;
Contracts signed between schools and suppliers should not be on an exclusivity basis. Contracts should guarantee that uniforms would be available, but not that they would be available only from one supplier;
More suppliers should be encouraged to enter the market;
Schools should keep parents informed about who would have won the contract to provide uniforms but parents should be given the opportunity to source their uniforms from other suppliers;
The recommendations were issued after the committee held meeting with officials from the Education Department, Church and Independent schools and the Competition Division, among others.
The meetings followed a report by the Competition Division which pointed out that uniforms were often sources from one retailer identified by the schools and the uniforms therefore cost more than they would have been had they been available in ordinary shops.
It was also found that schools were often producing uniforms which were very specific, making it difficult for the parents to buy them from shops other than the retailers identified by the schools.
The committee's report can be seen on the pdf below. Comments can be sent to
Attached files