A Day of Uniform Impact

I sit writing my very first diary entry from the train, returning from a school visit in Birmingham, where my colleague Wenrong and I have just spent time at Oasis Academy Benson, one of the five schools Uniting Uniforms is supporting this year.

My day started at the unholy time of 05:15, when the alarm went off. I had to stop off in the office where my colleague Orna kindly helped me pack up and then off I went, bleary-eyed but determined! There was plenty of disruption on the line causing us a slight delay arriving into Birmingham and, just for added drama, the Edgbaston cricket crowd had descended on the taxi rank.

We finally jumped into an Uber and made our way to the School.

From the moment we arrived, it was all go! We checked in, and before I could catch my breath, I was ushered on stage for a quick speech about the charity. Meanwhile, Wenrong, calm as ever, was setting up the uniform samples.

Before we knew it we had a long queue of eager parents and children waiting to place orders and check sizes. Polo shirts and PE kits were flying left, right and centre. In just over an hour, we’d taken all the orders, packed up, and were back in another Uber heading to the station.

Our return train was cancelled (of course it was), so we found ourselves with an unexpected 40-minute window to catch our breath.

As I sit here now, slightly sleep-deprived, I think about all the behind-the-scenes work Harriet put in to make the day run so smoothly. The parents’ surprised smiles when we told them the uniforms were free, and the excited faces of the little ones getting ready for their very first day at school.

And in that moment, it’s clear — we’re not just handing out clothes. We’re handing out confidence, relief, and a sense of belonging. That’s worth every 5:15am alarm.