How much do you pay for the essentials for starting year 7?

Wasn't' going to add it up but...
School bus £900 year
Laptop / tablet £450
Uniform (blazer, four shirts, two jumpers, two skirts) £150
PE kit (hoodie, top & skort) £50
Football boots - already have
Trainers - reusing
Shoes - £60 (don't even get me started...)
Yr 7 residential £285
Art supplies £12
and still have stationary & lunches...
And this is a STATE school...but still hitting the £2k mark.

£380 last year my DDs uniform cost me including maths accessories 😑 Think Iv spent another £15 on some joggers since.

The list had rugby boots and football boots on as well as rugby tops and other things. A friend said not to buy them as they won't get used and she was right. Only need new shoes this year thankfully

Our dry cleaners will sew in name tapes for £1 an item.

DD's prices were:

• Blazer £31
• Skirts £19
• PE Skort £12
• PE Polo £12
• PE Socks £5
• PE Leggings £17
• PE Hoodie £21
• School Tie £6

All branded / logo'd

Asda shirts, socks, underwear etc for the rest to try to keep costs down.

Blazer alone costs £50 at ds's school. How do you get all that for £80??

Presumably it doesn't cost £50 at this poster's school. DD's school blazer was £20 and her shirt and trousers were bog standard, buy them anywhere ones.Mind you her school PE kit was about £60 all on its own!

Blazer alone costs £50 at ds's school. How do you get all that for £80??

Blazer is only £25 at dd's. They've really done a good job at keeping costs down.

It's fucking expensive alright. And the bulk of the cost that I pay is for what I consider to be completely unnecessary stuff like blazers (if there is a less practical item of clothing I've yet to come across it) and logo PE kit (what the fuck is wrong with t shirt and joggers? -they're on a goddamn field ffs). Hate hate hate school uniform.

Last year blazer, tie, pe top and shorts, or socks, shirts x4 and skirts x2 cost around £80.

Blazer alone costs £50 at ds's school. How do you get all that for £80??

Uniform for PE, new trousers (old school was grey new school is black), blazer, shirts etc £200
PE Shoes - I buy Astros for him to go out and play in anyway and he can take them in for lessons £0 (he owns them already)
Calculator £8
Stationery £5
New bag (he used same one from y4-y6) £25
School shoes £45? (Not bought yet)

Didn't dare total it all up I sized up on PE kits so these have lasted the whole of year 7 and 8 and tops will last through most of year 9 hopefully.
We invested in more expensive DM shoes as DS has a decent walk to and from school and M&S shirts and trousers (as I feel they wash and wear better).
A top tip is buy two ties (a friend told me this and this has been a godsend on hectic mornings).

About £260 on uniform, trainers and backpack (no shoes as she recently had new ones into the summer term), £25 on stationery sundries, a one-off voluntary contribution (amount TBC).

BUT think there's a PGL camp coming up during October half-term. Conflicted about her going, as she just went on one at the end of primary school. Although I know it's ostensibly a bonding exercise so to be encouraged early on in secondary school career.

A relative bargain though compared with DC1's school (even the DofE Bronze seemed to cost considerably more than most other schools because of additional training weekends etc...) - we pay monthly voluntary contributions which add up to about £400 a year alone!

Luckily being in London the DC get their travel free (on buses and trams) which is a big plus!

I reckon it's going to be around £250, by the time we're done purchasing this summer, take into account the £60 a month dinner money, cost of a locker, inevitable trips. I can't see year 7 costing less than £6-700.

In contrast, youngest has cost about £70 to return to primary school in September so far and that includes new underwear!

Wow! There's some crazy amounts on here, I'm so glad that dd's school uniform is nowhere near that. I think it's actually pretty reasonable.
Last year blazer, tie, pe top and shorts, or socks, shirts x4 and skirts x2 cost around £80. Astroturf boots £15 from sports direct, bag £15 and shoes £20 from clarks outlet. Probably another £20 on pencil case, calculator and stationary. So she was ready to go for £150. Not too bad.

Just paid over £1,000 for an annual bus pass :-(.

Uniform in at around £200 all in ex shoes and trainers.

Expensive old business this.

We spent over £200 in the uniform shop, but blazer and jumpers are still going strong and I've only just bought new shirts and skirts at the end of year 8.
School shoes and trainers were extra.
Dd walks to school and I don't think of lunches and phone as being school expenses.

paperless school? how does that work?

And as you, plus an iPad on to of it. It's a paperless school ffs

That seems a lot, but hopefully the uniform will last at least a couple of years? (DD1's lasted the full 5 years as she didn't grow much; but then DD2 lost whole PE kit in dribs and drabs over the course of y7).

School bus seems a lot but you have covered whole academic year. Similarly if you are paying upfront for lunches there is no more until Jan.

Insurance for phone. Hot gun for art projects

BTW it gets better - DS2 is going into year 10 and had a new blazer last term £35, new trousers at Easter so they are OK, lots of shirts still OK.

Just needs new shoes and a few pens. Not too bad really.

YY stationery - lots of pens please, black or blue
ruler
Scientific calculator (but check with school as they may have a specific one they prefer an they may also sell them cheap!)
pencils, sharpener, rubber.

Yes he needs a couple of bags too.

To be fair OP most of that list is the bus and lunch and that's nearly £4 a day for lunch which he might not need? My DS spends about £2.50. Mind you that's a canteen system - I guess yours may be fixed price.

Pen (lots), pencil, ruler, rubber, protractor, pair of compasses, scientific calculator.

Also coloured pencils and a glue stick will be handy.

school uniform SHOP* that should say