Business
School costs a ‘real struggle’ for parents in Wales
Bethan LewisFamily and education correspondent, BBC Wales News
A mum says she starts to dread the new school year from Christmas because of the cost of uniform and other kits her children will need in September.
Vicky Williams, from Caerphilly, said she gets “anxious” her children will not have everything they need and has to start budgeting months in advance.
It is estimated the minimum cost of sending a child to secondary school has reached almost £2,300 a year, up £600 since 2022, with the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) saying lower and middle-income families face “a real struggle”.
The Welsh government said it was doing everything it could to support families.
Ms Williams starts budgeting at the start of the year for the items her nine and 14-year-old will need.
She said: “I dread it after Christmas – I know if I don’t plan or budget I am going to be struggling August, September time.
“I’ll be getting anxious that my children aren’t going to school with the proper equipment so I’ve got to plan well in advance in order to prepare and be able to afford to buy their uniforms and everything else they need.”
She said while her daughter’s primary school uniform does not require logos, her 14-year-old son needs a separate PE kit, rugby kit and football kit.
Trips are another source of stress and even though schools help parents with payment plans, Ms Williams said sometimes there was not enough notice of upcoming expenses.
“You want your children to get involved in everything, want to go out for trips with their friends, go on a bus and have the experience and everything.
“But then when the cost of most trips are so high and it’s not doable for some, then you feel guilty then as a parent that your child is missing out.”
The part-time supermarket delivery driver also has a two-year-old and said she was already anticipating “that constant stress and anxiety on my mind that I’ll have three children in school” in two years’ time.
On the Lansbury Park estate, Caerphilly Uniform Exchange sells pre-loved and donated uniform for a minimal cost or items can be swapped for free.
Director Lisa Watkins said about 120 families a month use the Caerphilly shop.
They have other hubs in the borough, an online shop and give free bundles for children referred by schools and social services.
“Some schools have changed their uniform to make things more generic and accessible, but more work could be done definitely”, she said.
“I think that we should be treating school uniform more like workwear. It doesn’t matter if it’s got a hole or a bit of paint on it, you know, that’s kind of what it’s for.”
As well as uniform, the shop also supplies other costumes and outfits.
“Prom is a huge cost to parents at the moment. Things like World Book Day, Children in Need, Christmas Nativity, Christmas jumper days,” Ms Watkins said.
“As time progresses, we find all of these different celebrations and things to take part in but I think there’s little thought on how much it actually burdens parents financially.”
She added parents faced “absolutely huge” financial pressures, and did not want to have “the only child that isn’t going to prom, or hasn’t got the fancy dress outfit, or the new football boots.”
A report published by the CPAG in May estimated the minimum cost of education is more than £1,000 for primary school children and almost £2,300 for secondary school children, a rise of 30% on three years ago.
It said the cost of food for the school day and technology for learning were the main sources of increases for secondary school children.
“This is a really significant amount of money for families,” said Ellie Harwood, senior education policy officer for CPAG.
“It can be a real struggle for households on low and middle incomes to meet the cost and obviously the more children you have the greater the cost”.
Ms Harwood said research had suggested uniform costs had “flat-lined”, which she hoped was a “reflection in changes of school policy”.
At primary level in Wales, universal free school meals “saves families around £500 a year per child”, Ms Harwood said, but a strict means test still applied for secondary age children.
She said access to Welsh government support with the costs of school should be expanded .
“There are a lot of households living in poverty in Wales who cannot currently access free school meals or the school essentials grant,” she said.
“They can’t get help with the cost of school trips.
“We know there’s about 25,000 secondary aged learners who are living in poverty who don’t qualify for support with these grants and with free school meals.”
The Welsh government said: “We are doing everything we can to support families in Wales”.
“We continue to monitor the potential impact of inflation on the number of learners eligible for a free school meal and the School Essentials Grant.”
It said it recognised the “financial burden” of school uniform.
“Our statutory guidance on school uniform policy says that affordability should be a priority, and branded items should not be compulsory.
“We are currently reviewing the impact of the changes to the guidance”.
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Gold and silver sales alone accounted for an astonishing Rs 60,000 crore of the total trade, registering a robust 25% increase from last year’s value
Gold prices have soared by approximately 60% year-on-year, crossing the Rs 1,30,000 per 10-gram mark. (Representational image/News18)
Indian consumers defied a massive surge in prices to spend an estimated Rs 1 lakh crore on Dhanteras this year, showcasing the festival’s undiminished cultural and economic significance. According to the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), this massive spending spree marks a significant festive boost, with strong consumer confidence overriding high-cost pressures.
The driving force behind this record expenditure was the traditional purchase of precious metals. Gold and silver sales alone accounted for an astonishing Rs 60,000 crore of the total trade, registering a robust 25% increase from last year’s value. This surge is particularly striking given the steep rise in bullion costs: gold prices have soared by approximately 60% year-on-year, crossing the Rs 1,30,000 per 10-gram mark, while silver prices have also jumped by roughly 55%.
CAIT attributed this resilient demand to the deep-rooted Indian belief in precious metals as the most secure form of investment and an auspicious purchase on Dhanteras, the day that marks the beginning of Diwali celebrations. While volumes may have seen a slight dip, the rise in value was substantial, as many consumers opted for strategic buying—favouring lightweight jewellery, gold coins, and bullion for investment purposes to fulfill the shagun (auspicious tradition).
Beyond bullion, the festive purchasing extended across various sectors, underlining a broad economic recovery. Other major contributors to the Rs 1 lakh crore total included utensils and kitchen appliances (estimated at Rs 15,000 crore), electronic and electrical goods (Rs 10,000 crore), and vehicles, textiles, and decorative items.
The festive spending also received a further boost from the popularity of the “Vocal for Local” campaign, with consumers showing a clear preference for Indian-made products, benefiting small traders and local manufacturers across the country.
Pathikrit Sen Gupta is a Senior Associate Editor with News18.com and likes to cut a long story short. He writes sporadically on Politics, Sports, Global Affairs, Space, Entertainment, And Food. He trawls X via …Read More
Pathikrit Sen Gupta is a Senior Associate Editor with News18.com and likes to cut a long story short. He writes sporadically on Politics, Sports, Global Affairs, Space, Entertainment, And Food. He trawls X via … Read More
October 18, 2025, 22:34 IST
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Business
Dhanteras turns record-breaking! Cars, electronics and jewellery see unprecedented demand; GST cuts, festive spirit fuel purchases – The Times of India
Dhanteras 2025 is turning into a record-breaking festival for Indian retailers, with strong demand across automobiles, electronics, and jewellery.Maruti Suzuki India expects to cross the 50,000-unit mark over the two-day festival, marking its highest-ever Dhanteras sales, said senior executive officer, marketing & sales, Partho Banerjee. “We are expecting around 41,000 deliveries today, with another 10,000 customers taking delivery tomorrow. This is going to be the all-time high for Dhanteras deliveries,” he told reporters. As per news agency PTI, Banerjee added that since the September 18 price reduction, the company has received nearly 4.5 lakh bookings, with small car bookings approaching one lakh units and retail deliveries reaching 3.25 lakh units in a month.Rival Hyundai Motor India Ltd MD & CEO designate Tarun Garg noted strong festive demand, with expected deliveries around 14,000 units, a 20 per cent increase from last year.“The positive momentum is driven by the festive spirit, a buoyant market environment and the encouraging impact of GST 2.0 reforms,” he said, as per PTI.Consumer electronics firms are also reporting a surge in sales. Panasonic Life Solutions director Sandeep Sehgal said large-screen TVs of 55 inches and above contributed to a 4K sellout growth of over 36 per cent from October 1 to 17, with overall TV and RAC sales expected to grow around 30 per cent compared to last year. Haier Appliances India reported strong demand for premium products such as large-screen TVs, side-by-side refrigerators, and front-load washing machines, with growth expected to exceed 50 per cent.The companies attributed the boost partly to the recent GST reforms, which reduced duties on electronics and essential goods, leaving more disposable income with consumers.Jewellery retailers also saw healthy festive sales, spanning investment-driven purchases above Rs 2 lakh to lightweight jewellery and gold coins, Tanishq senior vice president Arun said.Demand was robust across metros and Tier-2 and Tier-3 towns.Overall, the festival is witnessing an unprecedented consumer turnout, reflecting optimism fueled by GST rate cuts and the convenience of festive shopping across multiple categories, from cars and electronics to gold and jewellery.This year’s Dhanteras demonstrates a broad-based consumption surge, with both traditional purchases like gold and modern categories like automobiles and electronics benefiting from economic reforms and festive enthusiasm.
Scottish Greens will “call out the lies of big polluters”, co-leader Gillian Mackay said as she branded plans to develop the Rosebank oil field as “pure climate vandalism”.
Ms Mackay spoke out as demonstrators opposed to drilling the site gathered in London on Saturday.
Plans to develop the North Sea field – which is estimated to contain up to 300 million barrels of oil – have been submitted again by owners Equinor.
However, Ms Mackay told the Scottish Green Party conference in Edinburgh: “We have to be the party that calls out the lies of big polluters.”
Ms Mackay, who was elected co-leader with fellow MSP Ross Greer in August, told her fellow Scottish Greens: “Drilling for new oil and gas in fields like Rosebank will do nothing to lower energy bills or protect our planet.
“It is pure climate vandalism and we have to stop Rosebank.”
Development of the oil field, which lies 80 miles west of Shetland, had been approved by the Conservative government in 2023 but that decision was challenged in the courts in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling which said the emissions created from burning fossil fuels should be considered when granting permission for new drilling sites.
Her comments came as Zack Polanski, leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, insisted the UK is “one of the most nature depleted countries in the world”.
Addressing protesters in London, Mr Polanski said: “The very least this Government need to do is to stop making things worse.”
Ms Mackay also used her conference speech to hit out at the UK Government over the closure of Scotland’s only oil refinery in Grangemouth.
Hundreds of jobs were lost after owners Petroineos closed the refinery earlier this year, with Ms Mackay, who grew up in the area saying: “I’m sick of governments and corporations using tags like ‘just transition’ as a cheap slogan.
“What happened in Grangemouth is not a just transition.
“Our communities don’t need empty words, words don’t pay the bills, or put food on the table.
“They need real plans to provide real jobs and real opportunities.”
Ms Mackay insisted: “That site could have been saved. Labour promised to save it – they promised £200 million – and the message from the workers is clear: show us the money.”
She said that the Grangemouth plant “could have been nationalised”, adding: “We cannot leave the future of our communities in the hands of billionaires who are all too happy to abandon us when the money dries up.”
With the Scottish Greens having set the target of overtaking Labour in May’s Holyrood ballot, Ms Mackay said her party was “on the verge of a historic election” with the “chance to elect more green voices than ever before”.
She also told how the birth of her first child, Callan, in June meant she had “never felt more committed to building a greener Scotland”.
She joked that she was speaking at Saturday’s conference “in relatively one piece, without too much baby dribble on me” as she said the Green model, with two co-leaders at the helm, had allowed her to take on the challenge.
“In other parties there would have been a whole load of barriers to a new mum being elected to a leadership role,” Ms Mackay said.
“It is only because of our co-leadership model and the support of ordinary members, I have been afforded this opportunity.”
She continued: “The support I have had says something about our party and the values we stand for.
“When I think about the country I want us to be, it is one where we support each other, one where we lift each other up and one where we do things differently.”
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