To refuse to rebuy five years of primary school uniform

[Schooluniform2018]

Our small primary school has always had a uniform. I have had one child pass through the school into high school and therefore have enough shirts, pinafores and logo cardigans to pass down to my youngest two. Currently in years 1 and 3.

Deputy head was recently promoted to head and promised 6 months ago that the uniform was staying the same with a logo change in the cardigans.

Today they have decided that the colour of the uniform has to change. (Not sure if pinafore/trouser colour is changing yet)

So could we buy new pe kits, jumpers/cardigans and maybe pinafores/trousers !

So I have five years of uniform...enough for my youngest two to wear all their school life, in good condition and they want me to spend a lot of money which I simply do not have to replace the uniform.

Oh and they didn't bother to ask parents opinion, just presented it as a done deal.

AIBU to tell the school that my kids will be still wearing their old uniform colours until they graduate to high school in five years time, as I don't have the money to rebuy new stuff :(

I heard that uniform is optional at primary school, so hoping that will work in my favour.

I am so upset. It is a good school with no reason to change the existing nice uniform, the new one is made by the same uniform shop in the same materials just different colour and logo.

@WindDoesNotBreakTheBendyTree For 6 years?

I could afford new uniform but always passed it on. Some items lasted for ages and I always bought second hand if possible. It gives me pleasure to feel I am not wasting perfectly serviceable clothes. When we had a change of uniform like this I was really infuriated and wanted to keep going as long as possible in the old uniform. My DD was in year 5 at the time and I thought she could stick it out but she wanted to wear the same as her friends and I caved as I was being a bit ridiculous.

For 6 years?

what’s grim about it? It is washed between wears you know!! If it’s in good enough condition why would you not pass it on? what’s wrong with you?

@sick - she's mentioned 3 times/kids. We've done the same with some of ours, some of it didn't make it past kid 1, some of it's still going strong on kid 3. It's not intrinsically "grim".

The fancy cotton mix new school jumpers though look faded and saggy after 3 months. The school banged on and on about "quality", they'd have been better off with supermarket own.

It's unreasonable to expect uniform to stay the same long enough for 3 DC to go through.

School are very unreasonable for not planning better. Generall top 2 years have been allowed to wear out the old uniform in schools I've workes in.

I do think passing down shirts & Polo shirts is a bit grim though.....

I think it's more grim to throw away perfectly useable clothes

I have one logoed school tshirt from uniform supplier and the rest are ASDA. The ASDA ones have worn far better than the expensive one. The logoed one has faded and gone all bobbly.

Why is it unreasonable to expect uniform to stay the same?

At my Dcs primary school they have had the same uniform for 10 years and I'n pretty sure that all the locals ones haven't changed either.

The secondary changed and didn't have any kind of changeover period, the uniform was very different so having 2 different ones really wouldn't have worked.

Saying that wearing second hand uniform is grim is stupid and illogical - what difference does it make if on day 1 the top is worn by child 1 and is handed down on day 2 to child 2? How is that any different to child 1 wearing the top on both days?

Actually I had bought cotton open neck shirts and they wash very well. I can even bleach them. They will definitely go though a second child and hopefully a third.

But I want a supermarket option to replace anything which does not make it.

Plus I am bet the school get a kickback of anything we buy though the uniform shop. So this needs looking into too.

PattiStanger
Because at some point it will change and it's unreasonable to expect uniforms will stay always the same.

So at my friend's school it had been the same for almost 10 years. They they decided to make some changes. They seem like a sensible school so it'll probably be a change for another 10 years, but the changeover would be annoying and a bit invonvenient for someone at some point.

Havnt RTFT, but don't your school have a procedure to subsidies uniforms for families on low income or certain benefits?

My kids' school has that and it's available anytime uniform needs bought (new size, with out etc), but we're in a good area and not many of the kids are low income so it doesn't cost the school much to buy for those who can't afford it.

It's unreasonable to expect uniform to stay the same long enough for 3 DC to go through.
Colour changes and school specific uniform, except for maybe a jumper with a logo, are completely unnecessary though.

My primary school has not changed the colour of the uniform since I started over 25 years ago. They have introduced a polo shirt option and changed the school logo, they are the only noticeable changes.

Why do they need to make changes to the uniform? Unless it’s hideously outdated or restrictive then what is the point? Leave it alone.

We don’t always buy the ‘logo’ sweatshirts because DS is a sleeve chewer. So I buy a supermarket sweatshirt in the same colour. It’s just an option but you could do this.
I think however you’ll find that parents won’t all rush to get the new uniform, some will, but it will generally be eased in. If the HT gets shirty when people are wearing a mixture of uniforms then the parents can start complaining. See how it goes, remember during this time there might be hand me downs coming through. Also maybe suggest to the school to do some uniform bundle offers and a second hand stall to help with the situation.

They have already said there is no supermarket option for their jumper as it is an 'interesting shade'

Do you not buy your children a new uniform every year ???? Please don’t send them in in the old hand me down uniform they will get bullied !!!!!!

@Zcarter: what a load of tosh. Your DC are presumably at state schools, if you can afford to buy them new uniform every year?

My DC1's boarding school uniform would cost almost £3,000 new. Guess what: his is entirely second hand. As were/are all my DC's prep school uniforms. As were/are all those of everyone else at the school, despite the Head issuing some wanky decree about New Uniform. We al just ignore him. If you buy stuff that's made in Britain (as these effing £100 blazers are), rather than cheap crap made in China, you'll get at least three children, if not four or five, out of them. Believe me.

All that said, OP, I agree with you. Your Head is being ridiculous. If he/she can't be tackled head-on, he/she ought to be ignored. The children are there to learn, not to tinker around with uniform. Even supermarket stuff should last more than one child. It's wasteful and silly to think otherwise.

ice
I'm not agreeing with the scale of changes or (if i've read correctly) going to single supplier. Also think theyshould have a longer changeover.

Only saying that at some point things change. When they do it is always going to be a bit inconvenient for whoever is currently in school. The swap could happen in 4 years time and the OP would have 1 child affected, but someone else may have 3 DC.

OP I agree it is annoying and wasteful but it sounds like a done deal so I think you need to just get on with it.

As previous posters have said, get the black trousers. I know your dds prefer skirts but they may well agree to trousers when they see the tartan anyway! Just buy the bare minimum to start with. Uniform is always going to be a big expense with having 4 children. I try and console myself by thinking about how much wear they actually get out of it, suddenly it doesn't seem such bad value when you look at it like that.

If they are similar sizes could you get three jumpers/skirts between them and swap in as and when they need cleaning. I imagine that the eldest doesn't need a clean skirt everyday. My two youngest share some uniform as there isn't a big difference between them so i don't need quite as much. Also there might be a few early adopters - all those on this thread who buy new every year who get new clothes for year 6 in September?your son's class - nobble them early and ask if you could have/buy from them at the end of yr 6. That should sort out one set of uniform. Girls always seem to come off worse in uniform buying.

Next year 6 are excluded from the new uniform. Year 5 might buy it but as I said it is such a ugly expensive uniform. I would prefer to buy a new cheap supermarket uniform.

I just hope I can get them to agree that holding us to ransom to one supplier bespoke option is unacceptable and what is the nearest supermarket option is. I hope.

Can't believe all these posters who think you should just suck it up.
The school is breaking the guidelines set out by law.

I would ask the governors to set out how their choice of "an unusual shade of knitwear" , tartan skirts and uniform bags demonstrates how best value has been achieved for parents and why this is so important that it trumps affordability and quote the shit out of the DfEs guidance.

” No school uniform should be so expensive as to leave pupils or their families feeling unable to apply to, or attend, a school of their choice, due to the cost of the uniform. School governing bodies should
therefore give high priority to cost considerations. The governing body should be able to demonstrate how best value has been achieved and keep the cost of supplying the uniform under review.
When considering how the school uniform should be sourced, governing bodies should give highest priority to the consideration of cost and value for money for parents. The school uniform should be easily available for parents to purchase and schools should seek to select items that can be purchased cheaply, for example in a supermarket or
other good value shop. Schools should keep compulsory branded items to a minimum and avoid specifying expensive items of uniform eg expensive outdoor coats.

Governing bodies should be able to demonstrate that they have obtained the best value for money from suppliers. Any savings negotiated with suppliers should be passed on to
parents wherever possible. Schools should not enter into cash back arrangements. "

My high school changed their uniform (after I left) but it had cost my parents hundreds - down to school lab-coats. The school gave a phasing-out period but my parents would have sent me in the old stuff anyway.

YANBU

If they relent and allow black skirts at least, then dyeing the ones you have could be an option.

Although I'd honestly think about changing schools as it's unlikely to stop there.

Yes. Swapping schools is looking a good option at the moment.

@GertieGumboyle £70 for a blazer back in 1995

youd swear the schools think the parents are made of money!