The South Region will maintain the experimentation of a single uniform in its high schools in 2025/2026 following a positive consultation and confirmed support from the State. This initiative, already in place in some middle schools, aims to strengthen equality among students and improve the school environment. A project relaunched after a suspension.
Initially, the South Region had halted the experimentation due to a lack of financial guarantees. The project, launched in September 2024 in two pilot high schools—Jean d’Ormesson in Châteaurenard and Les Palmiers in Nice—aimed to reinforce equality among students and improve the school environment. The Region had invested 500,000 euros in this initiative. In December, due to a lack of State support and faced with an estimated cost of 44 million euros for expansion to all high schools, the experimentation had been suspended.
With the confirmed commitment from the State, the Region organized a consultation to gather opinions from the concerned stakeholders. “Since day one, we are committed to the experimentation of a single uniform in our high schools. We thank the State for responding to our call and supporting us in this initiative!” said Renaud Muselier, President of the South Region.
The consultation results being positive, the Region decided to continue the experimentation in 2025/2026. “This experimentation must be conducted with the students, parents, and school principals. It was important to hear their expectations and questions,” added Renaud Muselier.
A system still in place in middle schools of the Alpes-Maritimes
While experimentation had been suspended in the high schools of the South Region, it will continue in the middle schools of the Alpes-Maritimes. Five pilot institutions are participating in this initiative: the Merveilles Middle School in Saint-Dalmas-de-Tende, L’Eau Vive in Breil-sur-Roya, Jean Franco in Saint-Étienne-de-Tinée, Les Mimosas in Mandelieu-la-Napoule, and Alphonse Daudet in Nice. Nearly 1,700 students wear an outfit consisting of nine garment pieces, funded by the Department.
For Éric Ciotti, “the school represents the nation’s future, it embodies the France of tomorrow.” According to him, this experimentation could pave the way for a generalization of the single uniform in educational institutions.
The first feedback from students indicates an enhanced sense of belonging and a reduction in social inequalities. The continuation of the high school experimentation in 2025/2026 could thus contribute to a broader debate on the interest of the single uniform in schools.