Three weeks before the start of the school year, the city of Nice has decided to abandon the free distribution of school supplies. A decision that is causing reactions from both the right and the left.
The change of municipal administration is also reflected in Nice’s schools. Éric Ciotti has decided not to continue the free distribution of school supplies introduced in 2025 by Christian Estrosi. The program covered 22,000 students, in public and private schools under contract.
The measure had represented an expense of 440,000 euros for the city of Nice. The new municipal administration now considers this spending as an economy to be made as part of the budgetary policy implemented since the municipal election.
In a statement, Éric Ciotti’s teams defend an assumed decision. The municipality believes that the program did not adequately meet the needs of families, given its cost. “Our choice is simple: invest in schools rather than in display,” the majority states.
The city notably highlights over one million euros dedicated to educational credits for the 2026-2027 school year. Nearly 25 million euros are also to be mobilized for the renovation and air conditioning of 150 Nice public schools.
The majority also reminds of the maintenance of reduced school meal rates for families with the lowest incomes. Meals are offered at 0.80 euros in kindergarten and 1 euro in elementary school for affected households.
A decision that provokes reactions from both the right and the left
The end of free school supplies is not accepted by the opposition. The Tous pour Nice group, from which Christian Estrosi came, accuses Éric Ciotti of making “families pay the price of an unfair cost-cutting measure […] The education of our children and support for families cannot serve as a budget adjustment variable,” continues the former majority.
On the left, Tous Citoyen also denounces the abandonment of the program. The collective recalls having organized solidarity distributions for several years intended for children from families in difficulty. In 2024, 871 children benefited from a supply kit.
The association believes that the abolition of the program constitutes “a significant social setback.” The timing is also contested, since families are informed of the decision just weeks before the start of school.
Tous Citoyen also points out that the 440,000 euros spent in 2025 had allowed 18,000 public school students and 4,000 students from private schools under contract to be equipped. The collective believes that the expense must be put into perspective with the city’s operating budget, which exceeds 600 million euros.
The debate also concerns how to help students facing financial difficulties. Tous Citoyen refuses for this responsibility to rest on teachers and their educational credits. The collective therefore asks the municipality to reconsider its decision and guarantee the free provision of supplies necessary for schooling in public schools.
The Nice PCF joins this opposition. Gilles Verrier, section secretary, has defended the free provision of school supplies for several years. “A child must be able to have all the material necessary for their schooling, regardless of their parents’ income. If school is free, supplies must be too,” states the Communist leader.
Gilles Verrier believes that the distribution introduced in 2025 was a first step, despite a program deemed incomplete. The abolition decided by Éric Ciotti is therefore seen as a step backward.
Nice’s Communists now ask the municipality to fund all school materials necessary for students in Nice schools from the start of the school year. “Families don’t need speeches about purchasing power. They need to be given back purchasing power,” says Gilles Verrier.
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