The summer is meant to be a time that families get some respite, a chance to de-stress and so on but very often, for a lot of families, it is as stressful as any other time of year as they are trying to deal with massive costs. I looked at a receipt a while ago from a mother of three kids, two in primary school and one in secondary, all in DEIS schools. The receipt was for one trip to the uniform shop. It was for a total of €348.50 and she told me that on top of that, the family has bought €70 worth of trousers and shirts, and that is before they get three sets of shoes, stationery for two, and bags for two. The tracksuit, made by a well-known branded company, cost €55, and the family spent €30 on a wool jumper, which incidentally, causes a lot of sensory issues for an awful lot of kids. We look at these costs which could be cut in half if we were actually enforcing the guidelines. We need some kind of enforcement mechanism. The sew-on or print-on emblems on uniforms would make a huge difference to parents. We need to ensure an enforcement mechanism. Parents, like the women I mentioned, will get the uniform and stationery, have their holiday, if they can afford one, and come back in September and get the letters. These are DEIS schools yet this parent could be looking at fees for the two schools - there are two kids in primary school and one in secondary - of maybe €400. That is even before, in some circumstances, families deal with costs around tablets that could total €500, €600, or €800. The cost families are facing are absolutely bananas, and real action needs to be taken, especially in terms of uniforms but also digital devices. Voluntary contributions are absolutely Dickensian. We have parents fundraising to keep the lights on. Schools do not get enough money to actually run, and it is not acceptable. We need a lot more action. Education is not free in this country.

Sentiment score: -0.01