As some families face a financial struggle after an expensive holiday period, a South Auckland budgeting service CEO says the start of the school year will send them into financial despair.
Darryl Evans, CEO of Mangere Budgeting Services Trust, said he had witnessed families keeping children home from school as they couldn't afford uniforms and compulsory items to start the school year.
Evans has around 3,500 families he works with across the charity's three sites in Mangere Bridge, Otara and Tūākau, south of Auckland.
"What we saw last year is school [went back] in the first week of February and we still had kids at the end of March that hadn't gone to school because the parents couldn't put them in school uniforms, or couldn't afford the stationary."
Darryl Evans, CEO of Mangere Budgeting Services Trust, has witnessed families keeping children home from school as they can't afford uniforms and compulsory items.
Evans said he believed parents should be allowed to buy uniform items or stationary from anywhere - and not be forced by the school to buy more expensive versions of the items.
"A white shirt is a white shirt. We shouldn't be elitist with what our kids wear to school," he said.
"The clients we have, who are predominantly Māori and Pasifika, many have two, three, four of five kids. One family we work with has 13 school-age children."
"Whether people like it or not, under the Education Act, education is free. But of course we all know that it isn't."
Evans, who has three sons, said the school costs were really hard - even for working parents like himself.
"We've been talking to some of our sponsors like Countdown and a couple of other organisations and asking them to donate $5 per staff member and we will set up a stationary account. Then families [in financial distress], we can take their kid into Warehouse Stationary and provide some stationary for them."
The trust has also set up a recycled uniform box, for families struggling with the expense of compulsory uniform items.
"18 months ago we started a recycled uniform box. When kids leave school, or outgrow their uniform, they donate them to us and we either post it on our Facebook page, or we pass it onto a family that we know [is struggling]."
"As long as they are clean and not damaged - a uniform is a uniform."
Evans said anyone needing help to cope with the financial strain at the start of the school year, shouldn't be embarrassed to ask the trust for help.
"There's no shame in asking for help. If you put your hand up and ask, it's the difference between your kids having food - or your kids going to school hungry."