To think school uniform is too expensive?

[Loveheart1133]

Secondary school is going to cost in excess of £200.

That’s just for one child. That’s for 2 sweatshirts, 1 full PE kit, tie, 2 x trousers, 5 x shirts, shoes, stationery.

The £200 is not including school bag, coat, trainers for PE.

I know that the government were supposed to be making new rules about limiting the number of branded items. But as far as I can tell the school require logo jumpers, PE kits which consists of shorts, top, socks, and tracksuit. Plus Summer polo top.

I’m lucky in that I do have the money, but I can imagine for some families especially with 2 or more children it’s completely unaffordable.

Items get lost despite being labelled never to be seen again.

I know people will say they get a lot of use out of them etc etc but honestly I begrudge paying all that money for polyester clothing to dress my child like a mini adult going to work in a bank.

Isn’t it about time that uniform has an overhaul and was actually comfortable and affordable.

My experience of being a parent and also working in a private school is that the 2nd hand shop is a major player.

I bought a jumper for £3.00 for my DD they retailed at if I remember correctly over £25.00 - it was virtually brand new - I can only presume that the school hadn't worked out for them - or they'd had to move suddenly. Summer dresses were normally a couple of quid. Some parents asked for the money from the items sold, some donated to the school funds.

I would have parents phone me up asking me to go through the 2nd hand shop and look for a blazer in a specific size. It was all part of the job and I was happy to oblige - I can't remember how much we sold those for - I think the parents set the price as they were selling.

I have said this on another thread but as a child - not at private school - my DM bought my blazer 2nd hand - it lasted until I left and she sold it on. My school skirt also lasted me the 5 years at secondary school - but then clothes were better quality in those days

Uhm wear and tear. The fact I have to wash his own clothes a lot more regularly when we hit the school holidays.
My 13 year old is not really into clothes. But even he wants to wear Nike and montirex. His latest own clothes shop of one montirex top, one montirex pair of trakkies and one Nike hoody set me back close to £200.
I sent him on a school trip last term in a brand new montirex top and he got ink allover it. Had he been in uniform it would have been a 5 quid shirt ruined. I wouldn t like to deal with that on a daily basis.

I must be lucky with my son's school. They previously only had 5 branded items - Blazer, tie, 2 PE tops and PE shorts. They've dropped the shorts for plain black. Tracksuit is optional branded only but any dark skins are allowed underneath which most boys have anyway. Everything else is completely unbranded. They have to have trainers and boots but as they have a 3G the super cheap mouldies from sports direct are pretty much all you can find. And trainers - he just wears his home ones.

I pay 40 euros a month more tax than I would in the UK but I don't have to pay council tax on top of that so actually I pay less tax and get more.

Well I guess your economy is better then.

But it’s not entirely free is it.. I have to pay for ridiculous branded clothing that is 6 times more than the supermarket equivalent, specific shoes that are not worn out of school, however if they wear allowed to wear trainers for school they would wear them in and out of school getting more wear out of them rather than growing out of them, “excellent packs” a ridiculous pack each child MUST purchase from the school with “school essentials”, even though they still have last years pack with plenty of life in it I have to buy a new one. Specific sport socks and ridiculous white socks that get ruined in weeks but have to be replaced because our children get in trouble if they are stained or turned grey, not to mention entitled people putting them down for not having pristine white socks. We now have to buy specific house clip on ties, the half a dozen ties that we’ve picked up over the years in charity shops are no longer allowed, we are 1 week in and my ND has lost her brand new ladled tie because it’s clip on, she never lost any of her old tie ties. Then there are the “compulsory” school education trips we have to pay for. Contributions to toast, constant “fund raising” for school equipment and supplies. Both my DDs schools would not have the necessary equipment and facilities they have if it wasn’t for parents money, tools and time we put in. £800/year each on bus passes even though my DDs go to the nearest feeder school… the costs just goes on and on. So no the education system is not entirely free, neither is it just a matter of “basic parenting on buying clothes” the clothes allowed are not “basic necessities” but over priced alternatives that schools specifically require for no real reason, otherwise they remove our children’s basic rights for an education if a teacher decides they aren’t happy with the slightest part of what out children get sent to school in.

A perfect example, we are on UC not by choice but currently a necessity that dosnt cover our basic pre UC outgoings, I contacted the school as they won’t allow my DDs to wear the exact same skirt but supermarket brand £9 for 2 that’s £4.50 each, I have to buy them £32 single branded skirt, the school gave me a skirt each for 2 DDs, one with a busted zip we couldn’t use the other well worn and bobbly, I did my best with the bobbles but on day 3 my dd gets pulled up for the state of her skirt, this is the same skirt supplied by the deputy head less than 7 days earlier. I obviously called the school to complain but not before my dd was embarrassed and humiliated in front of her classmates.

That’s awful - but none of it is unfortunately surprising, down to embarrassing your dd about the state of her skirt - suggesting uniform stops bullying over clothes? No it really doesn’t - it just teachers doing the bullying rather than other kids.