Parents struggling to factor school uniforms into their budgets are being offered a helping hand at a Norwich shopping centre.

According to the Children’s Society, yearly school uniform costs an average of £287 per pupil at primary school age and £422 per pupil at secondary school age.

That difficulty in affording the right clothing for some has meant 22pc of parents have said their child received detention for “breaking uniform rules”, according to the charity's research.

Eastern Daily Press: Castle Quarter shopping and leisure centre in NorwichCastle Quarter shopping and leisure centre in Norwich (Image: Danielle Booden)

Despite a law being passed in September 2022 stating that unnecessary expenses should be cut from school uniforms, many families are still struggling.

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Norfolk County Council advice states: “School uniforms should be affordable, and the use of branded items should be kept to a minimum.

"Schools should ensure that pre-loved uniforms are available to buy."

However, the chief executive of the Children’s Society, Mark Russell, has said: “While some schools have made commendable changes to reduce costs, this positive trend is still not widespread enough.”

In light of this, parents in Norwich are being asked by Castle Quarter to donate any pre-loved school uniform that is in “good, wearable condition” so that it can be passed on to other families for free.

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Gemma Hyde, Castle Quarter’s marketing and administration manager, said: “Buying new uniform every year is a big expense for any parent, so we wanted to reduce some of that pressure by helping parents swap perfectly good uniform and re-use it.

“We wanted to do something to help ease that financial burden, giving parents and carers the chance to pick up good quality uniform, for free, while also reducing the amount of perfectly good quality clothing that was going to waste.”

Donations can be dropped off in bags at the Castle Quarter management office, on level three, between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.  A uniform swap event will be announced later this year.