Girls’ school uniforms are 12 per cent more expensive than boys’ uniforms as parents face a “pink tax” on clothing at major retailers, research has found.

Online tax calculator Income Tax UK looked at the prices of items for a basic school uniform list – from leading retailers Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Marks and Spencer – and found girls’ uniforms to be markedly more expensive.

On average, girls’ uniforms cost 11.87 per cent more than boys’ for both primary and secondary school age children. 

The wider range of items on offer for girls and the makeup of girls’ clothing, which tends to require more materials and embellishments, are the most obvious causes for higher costs.

In primary schools, the average cost of a boys uniform is £130.81 whereas for girls it is £150.14 – and as girls get older, the disparity continues, with girls’ uniforms for secondary school costing an average of £191.68, more than 10 per cent higher than boys (£170.29).

Girls’ items like tights and underwear often have to be bought from adult sections, pushing costs up, while other teenage necessities (bras, tights, extra underwear, fashionable bags and even skincare or makeup) are used mostly by girls, offering parents of their male peers a cheaper welcome back to the classroom.

In addition to there being more clothing choices and subsequent higher production costs, a disparity in pricing for gendered items has long been labelled a “pink tax” – meaning everyday products, such as razors, face cream, shampoo and deodorant cost more for women than they do for men, despite both genders being regular consumers.

Commenting on the uniform study, a spokesperson for Income Tax UK said: “This study highlights the issue of gendered products having a price disparity, however it does provide the opportunity for supermarkets to not only challenge this, but also provide more unisex options for school uniforms.”