Entrepreneur Kate Stewart Launches Fundraiser To Buy School Uniforms For Children Across Liverpool

Dynamic Liverpool entrepreneur, Kate Stewart, has launched a fundraising campaign to raise £5,000 to buy school uniforms for children across the city. The initative that Kate has been running for several years goes a long way in supporting children and families in the Liverpool city region.

Kate is renowned for her incredible journey from humble beginnings to making her first million at 26. Born and raised in the city, she embodies the spirit of resilience and determination, as well as being committed to giving back to the local community.

Kate’s Just Giving page reads: “We are raising money for something that touches the lives of many children in our community. As you know, the back-to-school season is just around the corner, and while this is an exciting time for many students, it can be a time of stress and anxiety for families who struggle to afford the basics, like school uniforms.”

“Imagine being a child who is eager to learn, to grow, and to be part of something special at school—but feeling out of place because you don’t have a proper uniform. For many children in our community, this is their reality. Without the appropriate attire, these children may feel isolated, lose confidence, and be distracted from their studies. No child should have to face this kind of challenge when it comes to education.”

We spoke with Kate to find out more about the project.

Liverpool Noise: Last year, you raised over £12,000 for school uniforms. Can you share what that experience was like and how it impacted the community?

Kate: So we’ve done this for a few years, you see and I usually fund it and so many people were asking me how they could get involved. So I just decided to create a Just Giving page. I thought even if we get £1,000 towards what I normally do that would be great, but it just blew upovernight! We were absolutely delighted and we went out and we bought thousands of uniforms.

Every child that attended The Sandon got two uniforms each, a pair of shoes, underwear, socks, everything they needed to go back to school. We had people queuing up for three hours, right round The Sandon and right down the block, people were coming as far as from Birkenhead, because it’s not just people who are on benefits who are struggling. It’s low income families as well. And school uniforms are not cheap.

I’ve been campaigning for years as well, for schools to stop branded uniforms. I totally agree with the uniform policy. I think all children should wear a uniform but why are the schools making their uniforms a brand? If you fall over and ruin the knees in your pants for example, like my kids come home from school with no knees in their pants on a regular basis. Yet, if you’ve got to pay £20 pound for a pair of those pants, because they’ve got the school badge on, that’s a big problem. If you can run to a supermarket and get a pair for £3 it’s manageable.

So I don’t understand why schools are putting so much pressure on parents that everything has to have the badge on and you can only go to one shop to get them, so they’re monopolising where you can buy the uniforms from. So that was where this all started, because I was like, no I’m going to go and buy non-branded uniforms, and the school can like it or lump it, because people can’t afford to go to these shops and spend hundreds of pounds on uniforms. Make the uniforms accessible and affordable. If the schools want the logo on the uniform then they should go back to the old days where they’d give you the badge to either iron or sew on because the parents shouldn’t have to fund it.

Liverpool Noise: What impact do you think having a proper school uniform has on a child’s confidence and overall experience in school?

Kate: No child should walk into school feeling like the could got picked on, or that they don’t belong, or they’re ashamed. They should walk through the doors and feel confident, happy and ready to learn. That’s what we’ve got to instill in our children. There’s bullying or skitting in every school across the country and it affects children’s mental health. They’re going through hormonal changes, their bodies are changing and they’re so susceptible to anything being said to them. So that’s what we want to eradicate as well. Make sure that all children are treated equally and walk through the door with confidence. That can have a profound effect on their education as well, because if they’re feeling isolated or that they don’t belong that will impact on their learning. We want them in that classroom feeling good about themselves and feeling the same as their peers.

Liverpool Noise: There’s been such a positive response to the campaign already, which I think reflects the caring nature of the people of Liverpool, would you agree?

Kate: Absolutely, Liverpool’s full of people with massive hearts. That’s what we’re famous for. We’re famous for all coming together and helping each other out. And I think that’s always apparent right across this city. One thing about us, we stand together, we come together, and we help who needs it. So, the whole thing is say instead of going out and buying a cup of coffee today, instead pay it forward and put the money you would have spent on the coffee towards making a donation and a difference in a child’s life. And it’s just small little things like that, that make a massive difference.

Liverpool Noise: How can people get involved if they want to help? We’ll share the donation link but what other ways can people get involved and spread the message?

Kate: Giving our posts a share helps massively. Each person if they share that to the 100 people and those people give £5 we’ve got an extra £500 just by people sharing it and spreading the word. It’s also inspiring other people in different cities to do it as well. Those people saying do you know what I’ll do the same, I’ll put money in and I’ll organise it, then it just doesn’t knock on effect!

Donate and/or share to the Just Giving fundraiser.