By Anna Whittaker, Local Democracy Reporter
Nottinghamshire County Council has plans to double the budget for school uniform payments to help vulnerable families.
It comes after figures revealed more money than ever before is being spent on helping Nottinghamshire school children with uniforms.
Councillors suggested the authority could increase the budget from £500 to £1,000 per year.
The move was discussed by councillors at the children and families select committee on June 19.
A final decision will be made by Cabinet member for children and families Cllr Tracey Taylor in the July Cabinet meeting.
The authority funds school clothing allowances for vulnerable families living across Nottinghamshire.
Families who are eligible for help include those who have lost clothes in a fire, a flood, theft, have been made homeless or who are fleeing domestic violence.
New numbers reveal that there has been an increase in claims during the 2022/23 financial year.
During this year, £673.75 was paid out, which is an overspend on the £500 budget allocated by the council.
During the meeting, Cllr Mike Quigley (Con) proposed an increase to the budget.
He said: “As chair of a multi-academy trust of 14 academies, most in our chain have a scheme to help children who are less well off or those who have met problems with fire or flood.
“I would like to make a recommendation that we increase the budget to £1,000 which will more than cover the overspend this year.”
Conservative Cllr Sam Smith, chair of the committee, said: “I wholeheartedly support that.
“This is the first time that the budget has been overspent.
“I think it’s a reasonable recommendation that the committee puts forward that the budget is increased.
“We will add that to the recommendations. That will be put forward to the cabinet member on the forward plan.”
Cllr Jim Creamer added: “School clothing can be extremely expensive, especially for a family in crisis.
“I have no hesitation in supporting the £1,000 budget.”
The council considers all requests for help from families in “exceptional circumstances” for all school-age children.
Families can claim up to £50 per pupil, depending on the circumstances.
The current overspend can be contained within the overall Education, Learning & Skills budget of £6.6m.
County council papers said: “This was the first year that the £500 budget was overspent.
“It is proposed that the budget for school clothing and footwear allowances paid under the category of exceptional circumstances be reviewed to ensure that the budget allocated meets need from April 2024.”
