DD school coat found with another DC name !!

[Highfivemum]

So my DD came home from school last year without her school coat. It was three weeks old and had her name on the inside of the coat and also I put her name in the pocket on a label. So two name tags. Went into school regularly spoke to teachers and the coat never was found. She had worn it twice so like new. Fast forward to yesterday and my DD mislaid her jumper. I went to lost property and collected her jumper and saw a school coat in he box. Very worn and dirty with a ripped sleeve. As I always do I looked in the coat and there was another child’s name written in the back but underneath in pale ink you could see my DD name that had been written over. I then checked the pocket and there was my DD name clearly still on a tag. The name of the DC was a boy in the same year as her ( the coats are unisex). I spoke to her teacher and she said oh never mind at least she has her coat back !! I was flabbergasted to be honest. This other mum whose child has been in the same year group since nursery at the school wrote over my DD name and gave her DS the coat to wear. Then left it now as it is ripped and badly worn and I am meant to be pleased. AIBU to feel like she has stolen it. ? I am not sure how to handle this.

Well done, at least she knows you know now.

Glad you called out the thieving CF

Take photo and show whoever is the biggest gossip at the gates. She's unlikely to be trusted by anyone after this. Let her get treated like the thieving scum she is.

YANBU to be upset. However, it may cause difficulties for your DD at school if you raise the issue with the mother and the act of doing so creates a big, nasty fuss. I would write off the coat and move on. It is annoying, though.

Pity you didn’t have the evidence with you at the time OP. I’d recommend a more distinctive coat next winter, preferably pink. Although that doesn’t even deter some CFs as evidenced by PP whose DD’s homemade coat was not only taken but also brazenly worn by another child.

You do know that some people do just want something for nothing, right?

When the DC were at primary school and lost things (DS lost loads of stuff almost on a weekly basis), they would all be put in the lost property barrels, regardless if name tags. It would be a free for all scrum to get stuff out of lost property before someone else took their stuff.

We didn't always get things back. DS lost a brand new logo'd school sweatshirt (expensive), only worn once. Never got it back. School suggested we helped ourselves to one from lost property 😲

There was no point making a fuss about it. Annoying though, especially as we couldn't afford to replace the lost/stolen one with another new one.

Peaceloveandcrispsandwiches so you would be happy for people to steal your or your children's stuff on the basis they may be desperate and it would be mean to tell on them. Seriously.

I think given her response I'd have to tell the rest of the class mums. I'd want to know if someone in the class was stealing like this. Just a headsup to all the other mums to watch out if they send in anything new. Telling the biggest gossip is a good idea too.

Annoyed as I am I am going to leave it now. She knows that I know and I am hoping that at least it may stop her doing it again.
My school mum friend messaged me again to say another mum she saw at swimming also confirmed he wore the coat. Very sad that this seems to happen so often when I read your replies.