Parents of students reported that they resorted to tailoring shops to tailor or buy school uniforms for their children in conjunction with the start of the new school year, especially with the increase in uniform fees in some schools, which burdens them.
They explained that the prices of school uniforms in tailoring shops are at least 50% lower than what they are inside the school.
They complained that school administrations oblige them to buy uniforms through them, even if they do not need them, demanding compliance with what the responsible authorities have determined regarding not being obligatory to buy uniforms from the school.
The Sharjah Private Education Authority confirmed that private educational institutions are prohibited from collecting or adding fees that have not been approved by the Authority.
In detail, Adel Abdul Qader, a guardian of three students, said that his children’s school raised the school uniform fees this year to 700 dirhams (including the sports uniform) for each son, which means that the total uniform fees for the three of them together amount to 2,100 dirhams, but he went to a shop specializing in tailoring school uniforms, and bought the set for almost half its price.
Mahmoud Abdel Fattah, the guardian of a male and female student at a private school, said that
The school charges Dh120 for a jacket, while it costs Dh40 in the store outside, and while a shirt costs Dh30, it charges Dh60. “This way I can buy four sets for each child instead of just two from the school,” he added, explaining that it is a heavy burden on parents if there is more than one student in the school.
Parent Noha Atef confirmed that her children’s school requires parents to buy the uniform from within the school, despite the fact that it is available in external tailoring shops at lower prices. The uniform in some schools ranges between 500 and 1500 dirhams, so school administrations must comply with what the responsible authorities have determined, which is that it is not mandatory to buy the uniform against the parents’ will and without approval from the official authorities.
Regarding schools requiring parents to purchase uniforms, the Sharjah Private Education Authority said that the educational institution may not increase its fees until two academic years have passed since the start of operation, and the increase shall be according to the percentage determined by the Authority, and after issuing its approval, noting that the private educational institution is prohibited from collecting or adding fees that have not been approved by it.
For his part, Ali Khan, a sales manager at a school uniform tailoring shop, confirmed that he tailors the uniforms for a large number of students, after receiving the design from their parents.
He said: “Our goal is to ease the burden on them.”
He continued: “We provide all types of school uniforms, whether for government or private schools, and we are witnessing a great demand from parents of students, which has prompted us not to accept new requests during the last week for tailoring, but we only sell ready-made uniforms.”
In turn, school administrations in Sharjah and Ajman confirmed to “Emarat Al Youm” that they are providing school uniforms to students at reasonable prices this year, as the prices of the sets inside their schools range from 240 to 600 dirhams, which is within the reach of parents. However, if they wish to add alternative sets for their children from outside, they have no objection to doing so as long as the uniform is completely compatible with the school uniform.
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