Committee publication · Correspondence · 8 July 2026
Letter from Secretary of State for Education on Early Years Funding and school uniform dated 05.07.26
From: Education Committee
Summary
Secretary of State Bridget Phillipson informs the Education Committee Chair of two upcoming policy publications: an early years funding consultation (6 July 2026) proposing reforms to childcare entitlements, SEND support, and local authority funding rules; and updated statutory guidance on school uniform costs requiring schools to consider affordability and limit expensive individual items by September 2027.
Key findings
- Early years funding consultation proposes removing top-slice from 2-year-olds offer to increase support for disadvantaged families and consolidating SEND funding streams into single allocation with upfront inclusion funding.
- Local authorities will be able to utilise unspent contingency funding in-year from 2027–28, with streamlined supplements and clearer separation of central service funding from 2028–29.
- Updated school uniform guidance introduces explicit expectations: schools must consider total and individual item affordability, avoid unnecessary high costs (particularly blazers and jumpers), and minimise branding which increases costs.
- Schools must implement new uniform affordability expectations by September 2027 at latest, directly addressing concerns about expensive compulsory items acting as barriers to attendance.
- Early education and childcare system undergoing wider cross-government review announced at 2025 Autumn Budget to simplify provision and improve access.
Tone
ProceduralTopics
early-years-fundingeducation-policyschool-uniformsend-supportchild-poverty
Key actors
Bridget Phillipson, Helen Hayes, Department for Education, Education Select Committee, Local authorities, Schools
Notable line
“… uniforms are making children smarter not families poorer.”
Key Quotes
“… our proposals seek to reform the early years funding system with clearer, more consolidated funding streams …”
“Consider whether the total cost of their uniform might deter parents where their household is on low income from applying to the school.”
“Ensure that no individual item is unnecessarily high cost, addressing directly the concern you raised about expensive compulsory items …”
“The Review will set out a new vision for the early education and childcare system, one that impacts children's life chances and supports parents' work choices.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗