17 July 2026
Dear Parent/Carers,
School Uniform and PE Kit, 2026-27
Thank you to the parents and carers who came to our Parent Forum last week. This was a chance for me to share some of the changes to school policies resulting from the recent Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act, 2026. This letter will explain to all families the school’s approach to the DFE’s now statutory guidance on the cost of school uniforms.
School Uniform
There is no fundamental change to our school uniform. The DFE has set a maximum number of compulsory, branded items (those with our school logo) at four. At MWA, the first three of these items are:
· A black, V-neck school jumper with the school’s logo
· A school tie, with the colour stripe identifying your child’s House
· If your child wishes to wear a skirt to school, it must be the black pleated skirt with the MWA logo
Alongside this, your child may wear plain black school trousers or black school shorts. We do not allow skorts or sports-shorts as part of school uniform. Students may wear either a long or short-sleeved white shirt. Socks should be black, white or grey. Shoes must be plain black leather school shoes; trainers are not allowed. Students will also need a suitable outdoor coat; hoodies are not allowed.
PE Kit
The fourth of our compulsory branded items is the MWA PE short-sleeved top. This is currently black with gold piping and a gold MWA logo. It is our intention now to gradually move our PE kit from black to navy-blue.
In 2026-27
· All students must have a MWA PE top with logo (currently black in the shops, but phasing to blue when the manufacturers have switched)
· Students in Y8 to Y11 may wear any black MWA branded PE shorts, leggings or skort that they currently own. They may also wear plain navy shorts or leggings.
· New Y7 students should wear plain navy-blue items along with their MWA logo PE top and should not be wearing the phased-out black kit with MWA logos (leggings/shorts/skort).
Plain shorts or leggings without the school logo should be navy blue. We do not allow navy skorts or joggers.
From September 2027:
· All students must have an MWA PE top with logo in either blue or black
· Plain navy-blue shorts or leggings. Skorts and joggers are not allowed.
· The old, black logo shorts, skorts and long-sleeve half-zip will no longer be allowed.
Black MWA PE tops will be accepted until they are worn/grown out. We understand that a total change to navy tops may take several years.
We have taken the decision to move to a navy-blue PE kit to ensure we have absolute clarity about what is school uniform and what is PE kit. It is important for hygiene reasons that children change into appropriate sportswear for their PE lessons and back into school uniform at the end. The colour difference will make enforcing this much more straightforward and will eliminate the ambiguity which can cause conflict between parents, staff and students.
Please visit the school’s website for the latest version of the Uniform Policy. There is also exemplification, including images, on the ‘Uniform’ page in the ‘Our Academy’ section of the website.
The DFE statutory guidance now requires the school to make second-hand uniform available to families. We are now using Uniformerly as our online second-hand marketplace for uniform. Further information is also available in the uniform section of the school’s website.
With thanks for your continued support.
Yours faithfully,
Mrs H. Jones
Principal
