To wonder if M&S uniform is worth it?

[BabyofMine]

Just priced up for what my child needs, worked out as £130ish from M&S, and £66 from Asda George.
However if the Asda falls apart after a few months and we buy twice it will end up the same cost. But maybe it’s hard wearing?
I really don’t have any family with kids or any friends with school aged kids to ask!

YABU - Asda (or other supermarkets) are just as good
YANBU - M&S Uniform is worth the cost

Mine have generally had uniform from Tesco. Washed and worn ok 😊

We usually get uniform from Sainsburys. The one time I got polos from M&S instead they washed terribly & faded really quickly (a bright colour) vs the Sainsburys ones which still look new a year later.

As much as m&s lasts well, I've had to throw away so many white shirts that have come back stained or with black marker on, so it's not always worth paying the extra. M&S trousers are good as they have extra length in the leg which you can unpick as they grow.

Morrisons Nutmeg uniform is pretty good! Washes well, trousers are always outgrown before they're worn out.

I started on Sainsburys but found it didn't last all that long before it looked faded, I did find M and S better but I actually find uniform direct that the school uses the best with long term washing etc although costs slightly more.

Asda's uniform is the best I've found, the polo's wash brilliantly.

Sainsbury's is also good.

Only use Marks for shirts for my teenage daughter, supermarket shirts can be quite thin and see through.

We went with M&S for high school, but Asda and Sainsbury were always fine for primary.
For high school, we had issues with shirts, DD didn't like the feel of Tesco and M&S uniform was the only uniform that genuinely didn't need ironing, even the pleats held in the skirts. All the makes wear well though, all that polyester is pretty indestructible🤢. We did get blazers from John Lewis, as they were a better fit and tights from Tesco as they don't last long regardless.

I find m&s colour washes out of pinafores much quicker than the Asda £5 versions, the asda ones also genuinely don't need ironing ever but the m&s ones start to look pretty bad especially at the end of term. I'm not buying m&s again.

DS started reception in Asda trousers and had holes in the knees by October half term.

I’ve bought him and dd mostly Next ever since. Size up in the trousers, take the up, they’ve lasted ds two years, accommodated a lot of growth and then dd has worn them the same, still looking ok. Their white polo shirts have washed/worn/bern bleached countless times, abs have all also done two children and been passed on.

Obviously, there is no accounting for white board markers, massive trips in the playground and huge growth spurts, but Next sell the most robust uniform I’ve come across (DS is in Y8 now, I’ve bought a lot of uniform in the last 10 years). I’ll economise more on shorts though, as they are worn far less, and can’t go through at the knees.

My two have always had a mix of Tesco and Asda uniform. Never had a problem and I don't mind if something gets splattered with paint or lost.

I've had uniform from M&S, tesco, linked, morrisons, Asda, Lidl and logoed items

Worst... Lidl. The polo shirts always came out the wash looking like they had been screwed up in a bag for months, would take ages to iron and never looked neat.

The others.... indistinguishable really. Jersey stuff goes bobbly quickly, but us warmer. Long socks more practical than tights. Fading... depends on colour, but that depends on the school. (Theyve attended 5 primary schools plus one preschool between them! Eldest starts Secondary this year)

Stuff will unfortunately get marked quickly with pen. Even that one set you keep for photo day, which they will stain on that day.

If they need a tie, get two. They like going walkies overnight.

And socks... buy more than you think you need. And for girls, don't be tempted by the ones with different patterns/bows around the top. Its so much easier to make a pair if identical. If you have two kids in different sizes, get slightly different for easy pairing.

I'd pick and mix. I do find M&S trousers a bit better, but a shirt is a shirt and if you shell out for a more expensive one it'll inevitably get unwashable paint or pen on it immediately. Ditto sweatshirts.

You may find that with trousers you don't have much choice on what fits.

The non-iron stuff from M&S is genuinely non-iron. I’ve always bought them and have never needed to iron in ten years. Well worth the extra cost!

Honestly, no, I don't think it's any better. White shirts still fade, my 11 year old has trousers with knees that are wearing thin after two terms and I've had to sew up a hole in the pocket of my 4 year old's pe kit that she's worn once a week for one term.

I'd rate Sainsbury's, tbh.

I found asda trousers got worn and bobbly looking, whilst the m&s trousers last and look much better. You get 2 pairs for £11 with 20% off (they have deals in july) I also find the t-shirts last longer and the collars are better quality.

DS wears Asda trousers as they go slim enough. Next ones are bigger round the waist, even the adjustable ones don't pull tight enough. You might find that the uniform from one shop fits better than another. His Asda trousers still look good as new and he's pretty rough and tumble in them. The Asda drop waist gingham dresses with the zips and the jersey skirts are brilliant for girls too.

White shirts from anywhere. Skirts and trousers from m&s. They do wear and wash better.

£130 seems a lot. What are you buying? You don't need 5 sets of everything.

We've always bought from M&S because they do the super slim variety that my son in particular needs.

Their stuff washes really well, has let downable hems etc. Tend to stock up when they have 20% off, doesn't seem that unreasonable pricing.

Ds 1 has asda. Washes well and indestructible. Ds2 has m&s as he is very skinny and very tall. He needs the extra long extra slim trousers from M&S. They have the added bonus of extra hem so can be lengthened, but again wash well and last really well.

Both asda and m&s are outgrown rather than worn out and are handed down to other family members.

I prefer m&s for dds pinafores as the quality is better. Everything else is a mix of supermarkets and the odd m&s bits. I buy poloshirts which are 100% cotton as I often stick them in with towels on a got was to try and remove the stains!

I’ve always bought from sainsburys and it’s been fine but the last couple of years the quality is just not the same, the pinafores in particular are very thin and have lost their shape very quickly and the white shirts aren’t that white. The tights have been terrible too, we’ve been through 3 packs in two terms and the fit is way too small.

I did spend the extra at m&s for ds this year as he was going up to secondary and he wanted all the slim fit trousers and shirts which look much neater on him, he’s like a rake. It’s all lasted brilliantly, out of a pile of white shirts I can pick his out immediately, they’re still glowing white and the trousers haven’t bobbled or worn at the knees at all. I’ll probably get dds from there too this year.

I find M&S can be better. But it depends on the item. M&S t-shirt/polo quality is now abismal.

Depends if it can be passed down, my daughter has M&S uniform - she is its 3rd wearer and is still in good nick to pass on afterwards. I am talking trousers, pinafores, skirts etc.

We use Tu as well for polo's. We did a year with Aldi polo's and they were horrible, but both my children seem to be fairly clean and rarely get stuff on the polos I need to ditch it for due to staining - 6 polos last me a year.