Private school - uniform cost

[FrancyFancy]

I'll start by saying its 50/50 as to if my son will actually go to a private school, we haven't decided yet.
This morning I was at the local play park with my DS (2) he befriended a little girl. I got talking to her mum, I'm pretty new to the area and don't know anyone local yet.
Was asking about schools, her DD is due to start at one of the several independent prep schools, my son is registered for this school (doesn't guarantee a place). It has a distinctive very sweet uniform, which I mentioned, she told me it was £1500 including shoes etc. She said if you didn't buy as many duplicates you could probably get it down to £1000.
I had a look on the suppliers website, blazer (for all years including Kindergarten(equivalent of Reception) was £110, the duffel coat/winter coat, £130, hats at nearly £40 each (girls need summer and winter). Then a full games uniform, with its own coat costing another £40, summer dresses nearing £40, pinafores over that. Blouses £22-£26 depending on sleeve length/size
Seems like for boys it would be a lot less but still stupidly expensive.

AIBU to think this is totally ridiculous??

Private school parents - Is this the norm? If not how much do you spend? Has the uniform costs put anyone else off of private?

My Mum paid over £100 for my private school blazer in 1985!!! Sounds cheap to me.

I'm getting the idea that a handful of parents (like the one I met) buying several sets of new uniform ends up feeding the second hand market for years to come!!

DC at a fairly famous London prep and the uniform was nowhere near that expensive

Only a few bits need to come from the official supplier, and the rest can come from most high street shops.

And a weekly second hand uniform sale at morning drop off time

DHs bosses son is starting boarding school this year... they have spent £1k so far and not gor all the equipment. But £1.5k for reception is madness!

In contrast I spent about £120 at the uniform for my DD to start the local Secondary last year, plus blouses, shoes and trainers. DD2 will be cheaper next year as they've simplified the PE kit in response to requests to make it cheaper.

The cost of uniform is a drop in the ocean compared to one terms school fees. If you baulk at the cost of the uniform, then independent school may not be for you.

I suspect you’re right, there is always lots of immaculate small sized clothing at the 2nd hand shop, whilst larger sizes are much harder to come by as people realise.

It’s also worth checking the policy on sports kit. Since Covid mine go into school in their kit and don’t change, so actually I’d be fine with one dress but needed more sports jumpers than I’d imagined as they are wore 3 days a week all day.

Sounds fairly similar to DS's school. Although we're also able to buy non branded shorts/trousers. He starts reception in September and based on our experience of pre school we've bought 5 of everything as he always comes home filthy and I don't want the pressure of mid week washing. It's definitely do-able to have less sets though.

We budget about £900 per year for each of my children at their independent school…sport uniform is a big cost at ours because all the sport specific requirements rather than a generic “PE” uniform.

She has was over bought imo. Even with sporty boys constantly covered in mud I only ever bought 1 cap, 1 blazer, 2 ties and 3 trousers/shirts. Lose the jumper, they never wear them. As others have said, it's the branded sports kit that cost at private schools, but that shouldn't really kick in hugely til secondary. They maybe have you slightly over a barrel with the frilly collars and pinafores, as the boys you can normally get trousers and short from M&S, John Lewis, supermarkets but even at the prep mine went to, the mothers of the girls got the grey pinafores from John Lewis, not the official uniform shop.

Remember too that the schools contract it out to mercenary uniform shops (unless namey places like Eton etc) and they are always ridiculously expensive. You can normally replicate anything without a logo from JL/M&S or online. For example, one of mine had to have black socks with 2 blue stripe. Uniform shop wanted £17 a pair. I had a nice sideline for awhile ordering identical ones from China (where the uniform shop sourced them and put their massive markup on) in bulk for a fiver a pair, with shipping.

That's not the norm. In prep we spend £200-300 every other year (growth permitting) with top ups for odd bits as and when she grows out of them or they look worn. That doesn't include shoes though.

That's a good indie on the outskirts of London. But not one that requires boaters, etc. to impress prospective parents.

I have a few friends going through this at the mo for secondary. For all (different secondary schools) it’s pretty much £500 to the penny. This excludes things that are optional (a few things are), coats etc are not included as can be bought from elsewhere as can shirts and shoes.

Honestly wouldn’t surprise me. I’ve never actually totted it up, because mine went to the school nursery so I’ve never done the bulk buy all at once because some items carried over and still fit for reception e.g. the nursery winter uniform tracksuit is the reception PE kit. But I just bought new summer dresses at £48 each and a full ballet uniform at something like £60 so I can see how it easily adds up.

i think I spent about £100 a year for each child maximum. Great second hand shop for ours. Secondary is another matter though. Just spent over £500 for DD (new uniform so no second hand available. DS managed to get most second hand and it was about £200 for independent secondary.

Also once you're in the swing you realise everyone does 20/30 pc off, early bird sales etc in the spring so for the first year, get the bare minimum then top up the following spring.

Another tip I can pass on, buy school shoes out of sync! I.e buy the next size at Xmas or Christmas and it should last a whole year if you're lucky until the following Easter or Xmas holidays. School shoes and trainers are never more expensive (and the shops more hellish) than in August.

This sounds a lot like the prep my DD will be going to in Sept. I think we have spent a little shy of £1500 on uniform and kit costs. We have bought enough for a new set everyday, DH and I work, DD has clubs afterschool, I don't want the stress of washing. What made ours expensive is everything is in some way branded, even the base layer for the sports kit has the school initials wrote up the sleeve, pinafore is embroidered with the crest. blouse a specific pattern etc.
The winter duffel is also mandatory, all kids have to wear it in the winter (a friend told me she got pulled up for sending her daughter in one with wrong coloured buttons). I have friends sending their kids to prep school this year too and doing it for as little as £700, so it varies massively by school (All either west or south west London). We have noticed that there is less of an increase moving out of pre-prep into prep at our school though, the uniform is virtually identical, sports kit requires shin guards etc. but mostly the same.

blazer is £99 at ours, skirts £52; blouses are revere so you can get from M&S
silly things like base layers come up expensive the top base layer for games is £30

We spend about £250-£300 per child for prep, which is only slightly more than we spent at state. I buy about 1/3 new and 2/3 second hand for their main uniform; sports kit is virtually all new as impossible to find second hand (people use same kit for multiple years and it gets harder wear). They don’t wear blazers yet, but the required sports kit is extensive!

our school strongly encourages second hand from a sustainability perspective and virtually all of the students go that route when possible. Uniform sales occur every 4-6 weeks and are very well attended.

I think yabu to want to send your ds to this school because of the cute uniform then complain about the cost.

My dd is at independent secondary. The uniform is pricey and I bought 2 blazers, 2 skirts, 8 shirts, 2 ties, a jumper, numerous PE items including waterproof coat and thermals. She’s never worn the jumper and thermals despite being outside much of winter for treble PE. No boaters and hats and they choose their coat albeit there is a specific coat.

My dd wouldn’t have coped with such prescriptive uniform at such a young age. You are yet to know if your ds will cope with this environment even if he gets a place.

Totally normal at my DDs prep, and that was 15 years ago. Blazer £80, puffer £80, summer dresses £40 and winter pinafores £40. Straw boater and winter beret about £35 each etc etc etc.

1 each of coats and hats, two of clothing, one set of PE kit

You get very good at sponging baked beans off pinafores!

Second hand purchases work well. I’m getting a blazer for £20 and some other bite from a mum who posted on a group

Also I should say, our school does a great 2nd hand shop but DD is very small (she will be the youngest in her year) there wasn’t much in her size available (she wears 3/4, 4/5, seems most of the kindergarten kids were in 5/6)

If you are wincing at the uniform costs then private school is not for you. It sounds like you can't comfortably afford it. Don't do private school on a budget, it's a recipe for a life of stress.

My son goes to a private school but they have a 'new to you' sale at the end of each term where you can trade in old blazers and jumpers for ones that fit.

Otherwise his blazer costs £75. I think a fairy might've farted on it or something.

The rest of his uniform is pretty bog standard and thankfully can be picked up from any old place that does uniforms (grey trousers, white shirt etc).

You can either buy everything new or be savvy and buy second hand/nearly new sales.

I bought my son a blazer in reception (admittedly larger) but it’s lasted until year 2. Probably a bit of year 3. By which point if I find one in nearly new great otherwise a new one.

There’s a surprisingly large second hand market and you won’t necessarily know about them
until you join the school.

DD went to a private school in Hampstead so very posh in theory. The only school-specific uniform she owned was a second hand blazer and 2-3 second hand jumpers plus two PE skorts and tops with the logo. Otherwise she wore supermarket polo shirts, trousers, blouses etc.