PARENTS across Cornwall are struggling with back-toschool expenses, free budgeting platform Income and Expenditure (IE) Hub says.

Surging inflation and household bills are placing a significant strain on parents affording the school holidays and – buying new uniforms, shoes, PE kits and stationery – form a big part of those expenses.

Dylan Jones, CEO of IE Hub, which is based in Newquay, said the summer months are always particularly tough for families already paying for extra childcare and summer schemes.

“Families are at the time of year where their finances are more stressed than ever, but new uniforms, shoes and school supplies have to be bought before the children go back to school in only a few weeks,” he said.

Figures from IE Hub say that on average £173 per child will be spent on primary school children whereas that figure jumps to £224 for secondary school children – both big figures to consider when it comes to budgeting. Costs also appear to increase month-on-month.

Dylan adds: “Like almost everything, costs have increased since and we have witnessed, via the Hub, that child-related expenses have risen by £50 since the same period last year.

“We want to encourage more parents to use our free IE Hub platform to manage their school spends and plan out their finances better in order to take some of the strain.”