AS councils face the annual round of budget cuts, many difficult decisions have to be made if they are to keep council tax increases below the five per cent limit set by the government.

This year Lancashire County Council says it will have to make savings of £15million and blames a poor government financial settlement.

One option is to save £269,000 by abolishing secondary school uniform grants which currently help 2,200 children.

Although only about half of the country's local education authorities provide such grants, the figure rises to 68% in the North West and Blackburn with Darwen Council helps primary as well as secondary children.

A decade ago there was a trend away from uniforms in some schools but it did not last long because they play an important role in promoting school pride and identity.

They also stopped children competing to wear expensive items and being stigmatised if their parents couldn't afford them.

If grants do go, schools will have to make serious efforts to redistribute second-hand clothing and make uniforms simple to avoid making the gap between rich and poor pupils starkly obvious.