ALMOST 70 per cent of families in Bradford struggle to afford school supplies like uniforms, sports kits and computers, according to a charity report released today.

It reveals that 33,851 families in the district find it difficult to keep up with the costs of keeping their school aged children fully equipped and supplied, and this can lead to bullying and being stigmatised in school.

The report called At What Cost? reveals that in total £52.8 million is spent on such school supplies each year - on average £1,053 for each family with dependent children.

The percentage of families struggling in Yorkshire as a whole is almost identical to the percentage in Bradford.

The Children’s Commission on Poverty, a panel of children from across England supported by The Children’s Society, spent the past few months investigating the costs of primary and secondary school in the state sector. It found that more than half of the poorest families say they have had to borrow money to pay for essential school items.

Nearly two-thirds of children living in the country’s poorest families say they are embarrassed as a result of not being able to afford key aspects of school. More than 25 per cent said this has led them to being bullied.

A third of children living in the poorest families said they had fallen behind at school because their family couldn’t afford the computer or internet facilities.

Matthew Reed, chief executive of The Children’s Society, said: “Children are supposed to be benefitting equally from a free education.

"Yet the reality is that families in Yorkshire and the Humber are paying millions of pounds each year towards the cost of school. Children are being penalised and denied their right to an equal education simply because their parents cannot afford the basics. This is just not right.

“The Government needs to listen to this crucial report by young commissioners and act to make sure no child is stopped from getting an education equal to their peers. It must stop children from being made to suffer because they are living in poverty."

Councillor Ralph Berry, executive for children's services on Bradford Council, said: "We have been working with the Children's Society to try to 'poverty proof' schools, and do things like make sure families can buy their uniform from more than one source, or that they have a quite generic uniform.

"If schools want to have fancy uniforms then that that is something they should be paying for themselves rather than requiring families to do it.

"Schools need look at everything they do to see how it impacts families."

The report was being unveiled at the House of Commons today.