I am truly disturbed to read the various posts regarding childrens footwear and shoe fitting - ignorance is not bliss it is blisters and sometimes worse. Only one third of children have 'average' size feet. Many have low ankle bones, pronation, supination etc. There are 26 bones in the foot and over 250,000 sweat glands, so there is a lot going on inside them!
There are now more than 11,000 podiatrists in the UK and they are seeing a greater number of children than ever before - this is due to parents trying to do the job themselves by buying 'cheap self fitted' footwear and buying online. It speaks volumes as good quality shops are closing as they cannot compete with cheap fashion stores and online sales. Shoes should be bought in the same way optical glasses are purchased, as they are the only item of clothing that can actually change a child's physiology. A child has growth spurts so should be monitored regularly. The bones in the feet do not ossify until around the age of 18, therefore any damage done to children's feet can affect their entire physiology causing problems in later life. Leg, hip, back and neck pains can all be attributed to ill fitting footwear. This is not scaremongering it is fact. Feet are not standard they are as individual as fingerprints and should be treated carefully, in the same way that shoes may have the same size printed in them, but they are individual too. The fit of a shoe varies down to it's design, construction method, materials, even country of origin. This is why they should be fitted professionally instore, so that several brands/styles can be tried on and assessed. You may think shoes are expensive, but far more goes into a child's shoe than an adult shoe and you pay for what you get. A child is better to go without a trip to the cinema, a toy, new dress to have better shoes. A gauge is merely a guide to a qualified shoe fitter and gauges are calibrated differently too, so to say your child is size XYZ is crazy as in another style or different brand they may be a totally different size.
If a childs shoe hurts them they may not actually tell you but simply adjust the way they walk to compensate - this in turn throws out other joints in the body. For this reason shoes shouldl never be worn second-hand either. They take on the shape of the wearer so will rub where the previous wearer had a pressure point. They can harbour infections too i.e. varruccae's, athletes foot etc.
It costs no extra to have feet served properly, by people who have had training and are seeing a myriad of feet and can recognise an problem that might be presenting itself. It has been known to recognise diabetes in a child from their shoes! For unbiased free foothealth and footwear advice go to www.shoefitters-uk.org. It is a not for profit organisation that has no government help, but has been around for over 50 years assisting the public and industry.