Join in here if your PFB is off to secondary school in September or if you have any advice for thew newbies

Ds blazer was £45! Bloody hell.
Mind you, got two white shirts in asda for £6 and they fit fine so will get two more this week.am leaving buying shoes and trousers until August as he is growing so fast.
Still got all the sodding pe kit to buy for a boy who hates PE and will spend the next 6 years avoiding it

apatchylass - I watched our neighbour's son arrive home last week, fish down his t-shirt for his key, which was on a string around his neck, then open the door with it, still attached to his body (he had to get his chin in real close, it looked really funny ).

Thing being, he's 18

I wished I had bought uniform earlier - loads of places had sold out of the right size in the week before term starts.

However, secondary schools are VERY particular about uniform rules, so wait until you get the full kit seet at the induction evening. They may even specify what the bag must be like - black, no logos, at DS's school.

I didn't realise Ds needed a pencil case with calculator ('scientific' model), geometry set, pens, pencils, crayons etc.

Coats also - they may specify type and colour (black / navy, no logo!)

It all seems very scary and a lot to take in, but it all falls into place, bit by bit.

Find out the arrangements for lunch - we had to put an initial payment down on the cashless card at the Induction evening, but every school will have it's system.

Read the planner every night! The Planner is a diary they have with them all day every day and they write homework in it and any other notes and things to remember. Then they forget to tell you anyway - so check the planner!

Buy 2 ties. They get lost. Somehow. And there is no leeway in secondary for lost ties.

Make sure they know how to tie it after PE.

Chippy are you roughly in the same area of S London as me? I'm not sure why I think that.

My ds is starting high school in Sept. He isn't fazed at all, I on the other hand used to work in secondary education and feel very differently. But am putting on a brave face.

Mankyscotslass, that's how DS looked in his and still does....(he hasn't really grown much over the past year) - on the positive side, we are now hoping it lasts him until he has to change blazer colour in Year 10....

DS's sports kit part of the uniform easily cost as much as the rest of it - mainly because it is totally exclusive to the school with sewn-on initials....

This time last year was a really money drain with buying stuff for DS going to secondary school whilst still funding the Year 6 end-of-year things too....

The school rugby shirt is more expensive than the blazer!

The smallest size in the blazer is a 29" - DS is going to look like he is wearing his dads jacket.

Done some of the uniform shop at M&S. Still got blazer, school jumper and tie to go from the official shop.

So far:
cheapo Nokia no frills phone PAYG - much to DS's disgust. Good idea to make sure all numbers are pre-programmed on it.
Animal backpack & water bottle
lace up shoes (I vetoed velcro - they have to grow up sometime.)

Was thinking of getting a sort of lanyard to attach oyster card to backpack so it can't be lost. But is that the social equivalent of having your mittens on strings through your coat? DS is capable of forgetting absolutely everything except whatever song is running through his mind.

Going to get home key cut for him - not got his own yet, and hide a spare/give one to next door.

School is in nearest town to our village but still a fair journey. Was thinking of sewing £20 into the blazer lining or into backpack, but not telling him until he rings to say he's missed the train.

Buy a really decent rucksack for your DS. DW got ours a fairly good one but within one term it was falling apart so he now has a proper outdoors type rucksack and boy does it weigh him down.....

We just got the parent pack through this morning - details of uniform, parent pay account and forms to fill in, as well as an invitation to the induction evening - on an evening I am working! And the sports camp, which is £50.

There is a lot of information in it, it's going to take me a while to get my head round it all, and I will have to beg work for time off for the induction evening.

Uniform shop today for DD: £143.
That didn't include swimsuit (£9), tights, white PE socks, footwear (up to 3 prs of shoes), shin guards, trousers, tie(£5.50 each) or PE kit bag (£4)

Did include
1 blazer (£34)
2 jumpers
4 white blouses
1 school skirt
(PE)
1 blue shorts
1 pr skorts (advised essential?, £17 !)
1 pr long socks
1 white polo
1 PE jumper

So £9/item aside from blazer. Have I been a mug? The nice part is that it was like a personalised shopping experience because shop was quiet, and it is primary supplier for the school so knows what they expect well. She'll swap items in August if they turn out to be wrong size.

STILL nothing from the boys school.

Lol at tailing them on the bus.

I tracked down someone from the school uniform suppliers, who said they'll be embroidering the logo on the trousers to order, and therefore I can have any size I like - hooray! (am scarred by memories of starting school with an ankle-length skirt and finishing in a mini-skirt).

We now have a date for intake day, and parents are invited to come for a talk at the end - which is nice, at least we're going to be told some things, maybe. What isn't so nice is that the talk is at 3pm. In a town 15 minutes drive away. And Primary school finishes at 3:15. And ds2 has SN and there aren't many people I can ask to pick him up. Sigh. I've had a whole lovely two years of having all 3 of them in the same place, I've obviously got spoilt!

What you should do, Bertha, is stick her in the over-large trousers and take comical photos.
That's what my parents did to me in my 'one size will see you through to 6th form' blazer, anyhow.

DS2 went for his first transition visit yesterday afternoon. He seemed to enjoy himself.

Well, still no information at all from dd's school. The Yr7 head has visited the Yr6s at school, but we've had nothing aimed at parents. I phoned the school and asked if they would be sending an information pack out, and the lady I was speaking to sounded very surprised and said "but you've got the term dates, haven't you?".

They're just switching to a new uniform and they have to wear black trousers with a little logo on the side seam. The smallest size is 11-12. Dd is wearing 8-9 with the adjustable waist pulled in loads, so that's not going to work. The school receptionist didn't seem to know what I should do about that, either.

This is going to be so much fun ...

Well, first day went well! Fingers crossed it continues the same way :)

That sounds like a really good idea Takver.

I hope it all goes well for your dd (and for you too)

We're in Wales, NotEnoughTime - its not standard though, its a specific 5 week transition programme for one group that dd's new school have funding to run. I know a few other dc who have been on it in previous years, and it sounds like it has been a really positive thing for them.

Dds 1 and 2 have now both left high school and baby Ds goes in August! We are out of the catchment area so he will have to get the service bus there and back, but his sisters managed it and I'm sure he will too.
My experiences are to invest in a good quality schoolbag/backpack as they have to carry loads and get kicked around. Don't leave homework until the day it is due in,have spare P.E. kit because you WILL need it, and start a jar of two pound coins for home economics, dress down days, bus fares etc. Expect some changes in behaviour as they try to copy the big kids and "fit in". For girls make sure they have sanitary towels secreted in their schoolbags somewhere, along with a couple of paracetamol if they need it.
Try not to get worked up - they will actually survive!

Thats very unusual, where do you live Takver?

Well, dd is off to secondary tomorrow and there for the next 5 weeks, so hopefully it will all go well & make september less of a big jump.

She's not impressed though after a week of blazing sun half term down the beach and good weather set to continue, and I can see her point

Thanks tigertwist-it's good to know I'm not the only one feeling like this.

Thanks for the tips headlesslambrini, I'm sure they will come in very handy