Can’t afford new clothes for my son

[Greendalerocket]

He’s growing so fast. He’s almost 4 and now in age 4-5. I’ve got him in a 3-4 long sleeve top today and it’s way too small on him, his tummy is poking out underneath.

I’ve put a post on my local Facebook group to see if anyone was getting rid of 4-5 clothes but no one responded.

I literally have £1.45 until next Monday.

We’re okay food wise as we did a shop at the start of the month when we had some money in the bank!
We also go to my in laws for dinner often.

Its just the clothes. I’m so embarrassed and ashamed.

Could you talk to your in laws? Could they help?

Can you try vinted? It's like eBay but for clothes. I've had some great bargains from there.

Try not to worry about it - children are constantly growing out of things and no one is going to be judging you! Take a deep breath

Could the in-laws give him some clothes for Christmas?

I often get one size too big as they last longer that way, and there’s not a huge amount of difference between the sizes. Save your money for things like shoes that are better fitting well.

Hopefully Facebook will come good, and perhaps have a look around eg Gumtree and other places too.

Do you have a baby and children bank in your town? Or nearby? Ours supplies up to teenage sized clothes.

There’s a Facebook group called ‘pass it on kids’ which is for people to offer clothes etc. which might help if your usual local group hasn’t got anything. If you live near another area you can get to it may be worth checking other groups too, for the next village or suburb.
Our local community food bank also take clothing donations and don’t require referral, is there anything like that in your area?

First of all don’t be embarrassed - my DD is more often than not wearing clothes that are a couple of sizes too small, since she loves them and refuses to wear the proper size ones… or it slips and I notice way too late and have to wait until I get time to go to the shop… kids grow fast, they spend some days in clothes that are too small, don’t fret it, no one will care
second, is there a clothes bank near you? Chat with your health visitor, they can point you in the right direction

i seldom buy new unless its on sale .You can save a lot of money just buying second hand.I wouldn't worry ,just keep checking facebook market place your bound to find a free bundle sooner or later.sometimes i get a free bundle of the size up its a little baggy but if its nursery clothes who the heck cares.My 3 year old in 4-5 oml

Ask your in-laws for £20 then go to primark.

Have you looked on Vinted or eBay or Facebook market place?

I buy 90% of my daughters clothes second hand. New clothes are so expensive,

Have you got a local recycle group?

I think people saying go on vinted, eBay etc are missing the point - OP has said she literally has no money until next week!

As others have said, don't be embarrassed - kids' only fit them properly for about 2 days before they've outgrown them. In my area there's a FB group for a charity called Pass On Pre-loved which does clothing bundles and other things for children - perhaps there's something like that near you? It might be worth speaking to someone at your local church too. But please don't be ashamed, so many are struggling right now.

Do you have a charity shop close to you? I used to pick up lots of things for my kids there when I was broke, sometimes 25-50p each. When do you next receive money? Is there any way you can borrow some beforehand?

Have you olio or freecycle? Maybe put a wanted on olio and a request on freecycle. I always see bags of clothes being offered on there.

Sorry meant to say have you got olio (app) or freecycle (not sure if there's an app but I use the website)

There is a Facebook group called pay as you feel where you pay what you can afford for pre owned clothes. Does your area have a charity swap shop at all? My village community hub does one where you can take clothes your child has outgrown and swap for ones in the next size

Check out Preloved to Reloved on Facebook also. I've given away a fair few things there.
Technically you pay the postage, but if someone is in dire straits, I've covered postage before.

Is it possible to speak to the people who run the food bank in your area to see if they can point you in the direction of a baby bank or something similar for older children? Or do you have a local Facebook group which you could post anonymously explaining your situation? I honestly wouldn’t beat yourself up about it, as long as you have food that’s the priority. Is he in nursery? If so they wouldn’t bat an eyelid if the clothes are a little small, I use to send my daughter in in older clothes because I didn’t want her nicer clothes to get ruined.

Are there other FB groups like specific ones for free stuff in your local area? Have a search. Also maybe look for age 5-6. You can tuck things in and roll up sleeves and trousers. I used to buy trousers a size up and hem them routinely.

People will be getting rid of summer stuff at the moment but you can layer. I think people notice and judge a lot less than you think.

I think people saying go on vinted, eBay etc are missing the point - OP has said she literally has no money until next week!

There’s no rush and no need to panic about clothes being a bit small. It can wait til pay day!