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Charity awarded £100k for back to school support

Cash MurphySouth East
News imageMaraya Gibbs Photography A rail of uniforms with white shirts, blue jumpers, grey pinafores and red sweatshirts on hangers.Maraya Gibbs Photography
The Crisis and Resilience Fund is a three-year UK government funding programme administered by SCC

A charity has been awarded £100,000 to help Surrey families experiencing financial hardship buy back to school essentials, including uniforms items, for the upcoming year.

While a new law in September means that parents in England will have to buy fewer branded items of school uniform, costs remain high.

Surrey County Council (SCC) has given charity Stripey Stork the money to expand its School Days scheme which helps families access essential school items.

Nicola Dawes, chief executive at Stripey Stork, said families in need would "simply go without essential school items or be forced into debt" without this support.

News imageMaraya Gibbs Photography Three workers at Stripey Stork folding uniform items to be administered to children in Surrey. The three women are all wearing navy aprons with the charity's logo, and are all stood beside piles of grey uniform trousers. The lady on the left has blondish hair and is wearing a striped top. The lady in the middle has brown hair and is wearing a pink top. The lady on the right has light brown hair and is wearing a black jumper.Maraya Gibbs Photography
In 2025, the charity's School Days Programme supported 7,503 children from 4,116 families

The funding comes from the £7.1m Crisis and Resilience Fund, a government-run scheme which provides local authorities with funding to help low-income households on a multi-year basis.

Last year, Stripey Stork supported 7,503 Surrey children from 4,116 families.

This latest funding will enable the charity to support around 8,500 children over the next 12 months.

Councillor Mark Nuti, SCC cabinet member for health and communities, said this money will help Stripey Stork to "reach even more families across Surrey with practical support at a time when it is needed most".

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