What is the SNP doing to remove barriers to education?

No pupil should struggle to learn because of poverty. We are building a system to ensure equal access to the full package of education, breaking down financial barriers to make a real difference in the lives of children from low-income families.

To help with the cost of uniforms, the SNP has increased the national minimum School Clothing Grant. The national minimum School Clothing Grant has increased to at least £120 for primary pupils and £150 for secondary pupils, available through local councils to eligible families.

The SNP are delivering the Best Start Grant to support families with school essentials. The Best Start Grant – School Age Payment provides a one-off payment of £314.45 to eligible families when their child starts primary school, helping with essentials such as school uniforms, shoes, and bags. This is in addition to the Best Start Foods payment card, supporting families with the cost of healthy food throughout the year.

Free school meals are a crucial element of the Scottish Government’s ambition to eradicate child poverty, saving families who take up the offer around £450 per child per year. The latest phase of the free school meals programme will include all pupils in receipt of the Scottish Child Payment in Primaries 6 to 7 and S1-S3 in eight local authority areas. This takes the number of pupils being offered free school meals in Scotland to over 360,000.