Youth organisation highlights looked-after children’s back-to-school struggles
Especially those in further education often fall through the cracks
A Swindon youth organisation is highlighting the struggles looked-after children are facing as they go back to school next week.
According to SMASH, many are unable to afford essentials such as pens, notebooks or bus fares.
It comes after the Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, called on schools to reduce the number of required branded items to three to make back-to-school shops more affordable.
Rowan Kikke, Innovation and Collaboration Lead at SMASH, told Greatest Hits Radio: “Something that's come up for us massively that we have seen in this Swindon community specifically is the ability to prepare looked-after young people for independence, specifically when it comes to going back to school.
“We've been trying to work alongside local businesses to ensure that children who are looked after have access to things like pens and pencils, notebooks, rucksacks and uniforms.
“It's not something that is readily provided, especially for those going from secondary school into college and further education. Once you turn 18, a lot of that support can sort of slip away.”
'I probably wouldn't go'
It is this added financial pressure on top of many other concerns, Ms Kikke added, that makes it hard for many looked-after young people.
“If we think about how much we can process on a day-to-day basis – you're already thinking about where you're going to stay that night, how you are going to go through really complex life relationships or how you are going to pay your bills.
“If I then had to think, on top of that, about how I am going to get a pen and a pencil for school and how I am going to get the bus there because I've got no money, I probably wouldn't go.
“And the reality a lot of these young people are facing is that education is that icing on the cake. That's one thing that can slip away because we need to be safe and we need to be cared for and we need to be looked after. But actually, being educated is atop all of that.”
Local businesses that would like to get involved in helping supply looked-after young people with back-to-school essentials are being encouraged to get in contact with SMASH.