Aibu to think school uniform (Logod) is just ridiculously expensive!

[Abbazed]

For example, average cost of a primary uniform is £160. Local high school cost my friend £300 for one child. My son's grammar school cost me £350. My son's state nursery cost me £50.

It's pricing poorer families out of uniform and into being bullied? How do you keep the costs down?

Those of you who are saying that £160 is inaccurate for a set of primary school uniform, what figures are you using??

OP said that she bought 3 logo sweatshirts at £14 each to start off, and was also including decent shoes and a backpack. So a quick calculation here:

3 logo sweatshirts - £42
3 skirts / trousers - £10
5 polo shirts - £6
2 summer dresses - £8
Shoes - £40
Socks / tights - £10
Backpack - £20

That's £140, and I got the generic clothes prices from the Asda website, the cheapest of the cheap...

I can believe that in a London primary school - ours charge £19 for a jumper but the school up the road who has the same jumper (same colour/material different logo) only charge £13. Apparently the school choose the markup 😒

School dresses are stripes not check so can’t buy them in a supermarket £15 each

3 jumpers x £19 = £57
School dresses x 3 = £45
Logo PE kit = £25 (tracksuit, shorts, house t shirt)
Winter school uniform = £30 for shirts and skirts
Tie £6
Shoes £45

That’s without bag, stationary and a second pair of shoes which inevitably they will need!

@Abbazed

YANBU at ALL. I don't miss those days at all (now mine are grown!)

Someone, somewhere, is making a shit load of money from parents with kids a school. It's scandalous.

It needs to be stopped really.

with kids *at school!

OP said that she bought 3 logo sweatshirts at £14 each to start off, and was also including decent shoes and a backpack.

I think you might be confused with another poster, the OP hasn't mentioned buying any specific items. Just that her child goes to a grammar for which she spent £350, and her other child a state nursery where she somehow spent £50.

I would think if you have a child in a state nursery full time they would need 3 sets of uniform minimum, that can easily come to over £50 if logo’d. Even at £8 each for polo shirt and £13 each for jumper or cardigan would come to £63 and then skirts or trousers, shoes, tights. Mine went to a nursery not attached to a school so non uniform and I always sent them in play clothes as they would get wet, covered in paint, food, soil etc.

Our primary school uniform covering winter and summer consists of -

Logo cardigan x3 £54
Tie £5
Tights & socks £20
Shirts x3 £9 ( KS1 logo polo shirts @ £11 each)
Skirts x3 £15
Summer dresses x3 £15
Logo PE jumper £14
Logo T-shirt £11
Shorts £3
Joggers £5
Trainers £15 (PE kit only comes home at 1/2 term)
Plimsolls £3

Total of £169 not including school shoes, coat, bag or logo PE bag. More for KS1 with logo polo shirts. Also uniform costs go up with the sizes.

Logo uniform isn't compulsory at dd primary, and is generally only worn by the children receive uniform vouchers from the school, which are redeemable at the local uniform shop. Writing this, I question whether this is the best use of the school's money as the children could be supplied with uniform from a much cheaper source. Hmmm.
I probably did spend close to the suggested average price, but decided that my time would be better spent doing less laundry so I have enough items to last all week and I bought the 'boy' version of the uniform rather than the frilly stuff because it will be used by ds in due course.

£300 for secondary? £160 for primary? I don't think that's the norm at all. I spent about £170 on secondary for one child which is a lot really but that included blazer, jumpers, tie, PE kit (skort, polo shirt, fleece, joggers, socks and all), shirts, trousers, skirts, shoes. I got the things that had to be logod and the rest were from ASDA and just used an old bag she already had. Then I spent around £100 on one primary uniform which I also thought was overly expensive, PE kit (shorts and polo shirt), logod polo shirts, jumper, book bag, PE bag, trousers, shoes. Yes uniform is too expensive and too much of it is logod or unnecessary but the examples seem a bit extreme. A lot of it can be used over many years though, I bought DD a new blazer this year and she's in year 9 so I'm hoping she's stopped growing and can use it till year 11

My DC’s new primary school insists on logo jumpers so I bought them two each- £72 in total.
I bought supermarket dresses, socks, tights and polo shirts- approx £40 for all. Have to get M&S trousers for DS due to his length and small waist- £15.
PE kits were around £100 for all three. Trainers, tracksuits, shorts and white T-shirt’s. I think it was the tracksuits really, I admittedly bought Gap.
School shoes probably set me back the most- £90 for all three from clarks. Usually buy doc martens, couldn’t afford it this year on mat leave. I buy more expensive shoes because cheap ones are a false economy.
DS needed swim kit this year which was £30 in total.
They all needed a new lunch bag- £20 in total.

So yeah, about £120 each. Sounds about right tbh. It’s expensive when you then have to get winter coats and hats, they lose or break things constantly etc etc.

DS needed swim kit this year which was £30 in total

I don't get this. How? Just how?

Irish mum here. Irish primary school

€40 for crested pinafore
€40 for crested jumpers
€11 for crested pe shirt
€35 for crested pe jacket
€10 school tie
Also must have knee high school socks. Tracksuit bottoms and school shirts. Price of crested stuff goes up or down depending on the size you need. Also all created stuff is only available from one shop. I've two girls. People with boy at least don't have to buy the pinafore and can just buy grey trousers

I'm in Scotland where education legally can not be dependent on wearing uniform
however every child needs a coat whether at school or not likewise shoes, socks and tights
but logo cardigans or jumpers are about £9-11 depending on size
2 x cardigans £22
2 x grey skirts £18
3 x white shirts £15
plain white t shirt for PE £3 PE shorts £5 tie £4 plimsolls £9
total £73 I got these in M&S mostly but could be got cheaper at ASDA, sainsburys etc
though it is not compulsory I would say about 98% wear it, some just wear right colour cardigans/jumpers not logo ones and some don't wear tie
she can wear any outdoor shoes she likes provided she can run in them and they don't slip off easily they change into plimsolls inside, she can wear any coat and any trainers for outdoor PE
and I expect the cardigans to last 2-3 years and PE kit
her skirts are fine in terms of durability but needs new ones as way too short

DC at private secondary, so everything has to be logo. One child cost £600 (blazer alone nearly £100) to buy everything from scratch.

We are absolutely not the uber rich, far from it. Like a lot of parents we dread growth spurts and always buy bigger sizes hoping that they'll last a long time. And we now use the second hand shop A LOT.

is this for private school? If so - thats cheap?!

Our local failing, just been removed frm the Academy Trust school in the middle of a council estate has a uniform consisting of a pleated skirt, coloured jumper with logo and a coloured blazer with a trim. PE kits have to have the school logo. Parents given that school have no choice because the other schools in the area are over-subscribed.

Schools can dictate this. The Dept for Education has issued guidance but it is only guidance, not statutory. There is no legislation about school uniform and according to the Education Act it is up to the school (and its governors) to decide on a policy and its enforcement.

There is some stuff in the Admissions Code about expensive uniforms, but it only seems to talk about limiting the effect of the cost and putting in place schemes to help those from low income families.

State nursery could easily be £50. In our area children attend 5 days per week and the uniform is exactly the same as the primary school, although sometimes they are allowed polo shirts instead of shirt and tie.

I don't get the logo stuff. 2 trousers, 3 polo shirts, 2 jumpers, 5 pairs grey socks all costs under £20 at Asda. It's a state primary so they can't insist on logos.

When I was at school we had a school uniform shop - my blazer was about £80. If I remember rightly the skirt was about £20/£30. We had to get everything from the shop even shirts (they weren't plain white) and they weren't cheap. Not looking forward to forking out for this in a few years.

That does seem quite expensive, TBH. My DC go to private prep and even their (extensive) school uniform doesn't amount to £350, I don't think. Though there is a thriving 2nd hand uniform shop for blazers/kilts etc, and blazers tend to get bought on the large side to last longer so perhaps it is around that if you bought everything new. Have your school got a 2nd hand shop? May be an idea for larger ticket items like blazer.

Maybe those of you buying expensive uniforms for state schools should refer your school to this document:

School uniform :guidance for schools

www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-uniform

In particular:

The importance of cost consideration

The School Admissions Code 2012, which is statutory guidance, states “Admission authorities must ensure that […] policies around school uniform or school trips do not discourage parents from applying for a place for their child.” 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

@Jollymollyx supermarket own brand is just about as expensive as the school clothes shop in my area, maybe a saving of about £3 but not much really.

Local Primary

Blazer £30 (school shop)
Pack of White Shirts £7.50 (Asda)
Pleated skirts x 2 £7.00 (Asda)
School Jumper x 2 £30 (school shop)
Logo PE Shirt £5 (school shop)
PE Shorts £3 (sports direct)
Book Bag £8 (school)
Tie £7 (school shop)

Total £97.50

Second hand sales are your friend

I think it's is all crazy and has put education back a century to when children had to turn down the chance to go to Secondary School or even just stay a couple of years longer to age 14 because their family could not afford the uniform. Even when secondary education was made free for all (1944 Education Act) children who passed the 11+ would find their parents sent them to the Secondary Modern instead of the Grammar because they couldn't afford the uniform.
It's the 21st frigging century and we'll still have children who cannot access all the educational chances out there because their parents can not afford uniforms. It's wrong. So wrong.