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Parents upset at hike in price of uniform

A private school in Dubai has caused upset to parents by announcing a change in uniform cost, by more than doubling the price. The increase is being attributed to a ‘new uniform’ design.

While the Dubai Scholars Private School previously charged Dh350 for the school uniform for students from Grade 1 to 6, the revised charges are now twice as much, with parents being asked to shell out Dh765 for the new uniform, failing which their child could be removed from the school.

In response to a query from Khaleej Times, a representative of Dubai Scholars Private School said: “It must be clearly understood that Dubai Scholars is not increasing prices for its existing school uniforms. This is a completely new uniform, and has been designed to be representative of the school, its history and its ambitions to be a premier school in Dubai, and outsourcing the supply and improving the quality of the school uniform is part of realising these ambitions.”

A group of parents assembled at the school on Monday morning to voice their concerns with the school’s management. Parents are requesting the school reconsiders its decision by providing uniforms at a lower cost.

Some of the parents assembled inside the school alleged that the school was taking advantage of the parents by timing the announcement during the academic year.

“There is no way we can leave the school now and the management knows it very well. It is next to impossible to find a seat in any other school at this point,” said a parent who did not wish to be named.

Another parent felt that the circulars were sent out late and most students had already re-enrolled for the next class. However, the school claims the uniform had to be redesigned because ‘unauthorised copies’ had emerged.

The school representative added: “Dubai Scholars has a long and proud history, however, unfortunately with this longevity, varied versions of the school uniform have emerged, many of which are unauthorised copies. Therefore the school, after careful consideration, has decided to improve the school uniform for the 2013/2014 year from both a design and material perspective.”

The representative also confirmed receiving complaints from parents and stated they were ‘working on a solution’.

“There have been some complaints from a vocal minority, which is inevitable, and Dubai Scholars has listened to those and is proactively working on a solution to address those concerns wherever possible. This includes re-negotiating supplier prices and may also include some fabric redesigns. Dubai Scholars will update parents as soon as those are completed.”

While the parents have little choice but to pay the revised uniform cost, the school’s promise of re-negotiating supplier prices brings some hope.

It must be noted that fees for school uniforms and textbooks are not yet regulated in Dubai by any authority. The Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) only regulates tuition fees based on the school fee framework.

muaz@khaleejtimes.com