Back to school: Which of Europe's 'Big Five' countries pays the most for school supplies?

euronews (in English)

A Euronews analysis has found that countries with lower wages like Italy and Spain surprisingly pay more on average for basic school equipment compared to richer European economies.

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00:00As parents begin to send their children back to school and grapple with the relative costs,

00:07the impact of supplies on a family budget varies significantly across Europe. Italy

00:13and Spain are, for example, the countries that tend to pay the most among Europe's five

00:19largest economies, despite having lower average salaries than France, Germany and the UK.

00:27The cost of putting together a basic kit comprising 20 items, like pens, highlighters, notebooks

00:35and scissors, seems to be highest in Italy. Families there need to save almost 11% of

00:42their monthly income just to buy the bare minimum. In Spain it's 9.24%, followed by

00:50Germany at 7.1%, the UK at 5.65% and France at just 4.84%. Spain's hefty cost is partially

01:04justified by inflation, the fourth highest rate in the EU in June, but the same cannot

01:12be said for Italy, which had the second lowest inflation rate in the bloc, just 0.1%.

01:20These figures, however, don't include other expenses, such as textbooks, meals, school

01:28trips or sport equipment. Textbooks, in particular, bring another heavy financial burden. On average

01:36they cost 591.44 euros in Italy and 491.90 euros in Spain, where they reached the highest

01:44price ever. The situation is also becoming worrying in Germany, where the price of school

01:52items rose between 5 and 13% from 2022 to 2023. In the UK, a basic school kit seems

02:03generally more affordable, however, unlike in other countries, uniforms are mandatory

02:10in British schools. Parents can spend an average of up to 422 pounds or 500 euros on uniforms.

02:19France seems to offer the best deal among Europe's big five, with essential school items

02:26accounting for less than 5% of an average monthly salary.

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