To be amazed that people still haven't bought their school uniform?

[llamajohn]

Kids go back on Tuesday. WhatsApp Group is alive with "argh, I can't find X item" or "where can I get the book bag"?

As if it's been a complete surprise that their child is joining reception and the uniform shops and supermarkets have been closed since June...

Why would you leave it to the last moment?

Ah they do! What's the difference between buying it at the end of July and the end of August? You're not going to suddenly get a huge payrise!!

I always did the shoe shopping mid-August. Their feet don't grow that much in a couple of weeks.

Presumably because they have other expenses in July? End of term in June, holidays and/or holiday camps in July. A lot of people wouldn't have anything spare before this paycheck.

Then for those of us who are time poor it's easier to do it all in one go at the end of the summer and risk paying uniform shop prices if we can't get what we need on the high street.

Tldr: people work their finances and mental load to suit their own circumstances.

Vulnerable families get financial support with uniform costs surely?

We're going tomorrow for school start on Tuesday. DD going in to year 1 so we have a branded cardigan and the rest is generic I'll get from Sainsbury's or m&s tomorrow (or next, Tesco, Asda etc, I'm not worried). We've had a busy summer and been on holiday for the last week. I've left shoe buying until the last minute as I don't trust DDs feet to not grow overnight

Nothing to do with finances I wanted to add

Some people will have appealed their place.
Some people will have been saving up and only be able to afford the last bits this pay day.

Not all of them. You'll always have some just outside the cut off

Which is fine for items like the book bag or PE bag, but less fine if you spend money on clothing or shoes, and the child has a growth spurt over the summer, and doesn’t fit into them when school starts, @llamajohn.

The summer holidays??

I tried and they said a straight no as it was over 4 weeks. Might just be the Teesside Park store as they were the same with my mother. I was a day late in returning something for her because she’d been in intensive care - she was still in hospital- and they wouldn’t even give a credit note

Month ago I checked ds school shoes which we only bought in April, still fit. We came back from holiday yesterday and this morning I got them out to check against length of school trousers which I ordered 26th july with blazers and only got
Delivered to local school supplier while we were away, sister picked it up for me on Thursday. I waited that long so no time to get tailored and have to do it myself today kind of. So he puts them on with his school shoes only to find out school shoes absolutely do not fit anymore.

So off we go to the shoe shop and a sport shop to buy school shoes and PE trainers and every day trainers etc like last-minute numpties. I couldn't foretell he would grow two shoe sizes over the summer!

I was glad Payday was only on Friday, I wonder how many people were actually waiting for that to get last bits of uniform or like me, we are panic buying stuff that they had bought elsewhere and was not getting delivered in time- school uniform shop wouldn't let me order in June but then July was too bloody late!

Why would you leave it to the last moment?

Because we have busy lives & don’t feel the need to do everything months in advance.
I bought some 2nd hand jumpers at the Summer fair. Got some shirts at the supermarket & tie from the uniform shop yesterday. Anything else I will get over the next week or so.

Is this why there is Halloween stuff in the shops now, people decorate for Autumn in the Summer & why some take their tree down on the 26th?

We worked all summer except one week. Tonsillitis happened. Now shopping on the inset days and hoping there’s something left in the shops

Yep I was at school in the 80s and felt the same.
I dont have kids so no skin in the game but our parents used to take us school uniform shopping on the last Saturday in August because of growth spurts and DB got through shoes at a rate of knots

But personally I always wished I could just be allowed to enjoy the holidays without constant reminders in shops and newspaper adverts and everywhere else of the looming imminent return to school

I refuse to think about, dc & myself don’t want too.

Why wouldn't you?!

We got DD's new stuff yesterday. There was loads left in Sainsbury’s. It wasn't an issue.

Household runs on JIT inventory controls.

Im so sorry to hear this. I hope the school are/have been supportive

I don' understand why people don't use brioche for their sarnies when they don't have bread?(c)

Absolutely this.

I do it early. Loads of my friends do it really late. I don't know why. Always seems silly unorganised and unnecessarily stressful to me.

Best hope your child hasn't grown out of it then.

DD did when I bought all her (appropriately sized) uniform for reception. I had to return it all.

Waiting to see how much weight their kids have gained & buy the right size.