Survey data from The Smith Family shows that nine out of 10 parents and carers it supports fear they won't be able to afford everything their kids need for the return to school. More than a million children could be affected. The Smith Family CEO, Doug Taylor, says for parents, it's a particularly stressful time of year.
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00:00Top of the list were digital resources, a digitally connected laptop, funds for things
00:08like school excursions and then things that many of us just take for granted, so a school
00:13uniform and school shoes.
00:15Now these are educational essentials and we know how important they are for a young person
00:19to be able to make the most of their education and build a great future and really every
00:25parent wants the best for their children and it's not a position that anyone would want
00:28to be in.
00:29The average young person misses about four and a half weeks of school, significantly
00:34higher than we'd want it to be.
00:37One of the drivers of that is a young person who's on a low income who may not have the
00:41resources of their peers, may not go to school with lunch like their peers, may not have
00:46a school uniform like their peers.
00:48When I talk to the students that we support through the Smith family, so many of them
00:52talk about the profound impact that has had on them in terms of just having a uniform
00:57like their peers.
00:58So they feel a part of a school community and when a young person feels a part of a
01:02school community, they're much more likely to be able to attend school and learn and
01:07make the most of their education and we've got a lot of work to do in terms of the learning
01:11gap nationally.
01:12The average young person by the age of 15 who experiences this advantage can be four
01:17to five years behind their peers in NAPLAN results.
01:20So these very simple things have very profound impacts on young people.
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