Aussie school uniform - what can I stockpile?

[ravenousbugblatterbeast]

We're now definitely off to Perth at the end of June on my 457 visa (woohoo!) and we're currently stockpiling cheapo duvets, sheets etc to chuck in the container which is due to leave in mid May

In my attempt to be organised, as I'll be the worker and DH the SAHD for the first time ever, in a country and state which is renowned for being a tad pricey, I'd like to buy a couple of school coats, seeing as DS will be in school in the middle of "winter" (which I understand is wet!) as well as some school shoes. I appreciate most schools have mandatory uniform, even down to the trousers in some cases (eek!) but presumably coats and shoes are pretty standard?

Of course now I come to look, there are actually very few coats around, seeing as it's "Spring"... Is this Next anorak too lightweight? Or is warmth not really an issue? So something more waterproof orientated like this?

And what about school shoes? Something like these from Clarks? And do they need plimsolls for anything?

Can you tell I'm panicking yet...? Twitch, twitch..! I haven't even thought about my own clothes yet, work is uniform polo top or shirt, so need trousers to go with that, I'm thinking smartish cropped trousers? Help!!

Congratulations on the impending move OP. Perth winters aren't really cold are they? I'm in Adelaide which has a similar climate, and have never had need of a winter coat, a light trench coat style thing with a jumper on underneath has always been fine. My kids have never owned proper Paddington Bear style winter coats. I think the Peter Storm coat would be fine.

I can only speak for our schools point of view, they have black shoes and predominantly white trainers for sport. So your Clarks shoes look ok. Do you have any idea about the school they might attend? Can you check their uniform list?

We're looking at about 4 or 5 primaries, depending if we can get a rental in their catchment areas so it's very much a moveable feast... But a couple of the schools' websites have been down for weeks now, so no way of checking uniform. I think you're right about Perth, it's wet is the issue, as it apparently wees it down for 3 months, but it's still c.16 degrees.

Don't panic as you can get a lot of school uniform at Next with free delivery. I have fit polo tops and cardigans.

I brought school shoes in three sizes in the same style which was great as they lasted a good while.

A waterproof coat is useful without any lining. I have coloured school socks from John Lewis as our school is in bush land and my dds are filthy when they get home so white socks are a no-no.

On the topic of school shoes, what do they wear in the summer (aka spring and autumn too I guess - in the heat!) Are trainers ok?

I'm not sure if "stockpiling " is a good idea. Surely most school have uniforms a tad different to the uk? In qld they sure are! In DD;s school everything is school specific, down to the socks that are school named. Cheap school stuff is everywhere here. big w target etc. normally white trainers on sprt days and black enclosed shoes for formal days. I am really not sure of any advantage of buying from the uk? Winter coast.. urm... DD has one "jacket" its a tacky top.. again school logo on it. Just not sure of why bring loads of stuff. If your buying it at one end unless perth is hugely more expensive than QLd bargains can be had everywhere here too. What better way of getting to know your new area than at the mall?

It depends on the school what they wear on their feet. Ours wear school shoes except on PE days when they wear trainers. Chloe is right though, it's easy to get uniform. My dd has a C fitting in a shoe so that's why I brought them as they are dead hard to find.

Ravenous calm down luvvy, my daughter wears awful school sandals but she is 6 so dunno what older kids in high school wear. But although school shoes are expensive they are available and not eye-wateringly expensive so maybe leave it until you get here?

Also schools often have a 2nd hand uniform shop - not good for shoes obv but fine for jackets etc.

I find that parents shift their kids from school to school willy nilly much more so than in the UK so quite a few as new uniform bargains to be had.

Perth really isn't that expensive, we moved a month ago from London. Don't worry! Everyone here seems to shop in the sales (always one somewhere) and as already mentioned Target etc could not be called expensive compared to UK prices. School shoes are expensive though, you are right there. All the best with the organising, move etc!

My daughter wears blue sandals in the summer and black school shoes in the winter. My DS1 wears black school shoes year round and white trainers for sport. My DS2 wears black trainers for everything.

Every school is different.

Ravenous, good t osee you. It would have been impossible to stockpile uniform for our DD's state school as it all has logos on it. Other than socks :) Navy sandals in summer and navy shoes in winter but I think white trainers are also OK.

You will definitely need a proper raincoat for winter here. It is not cold in the English sense but it does rain a LOT and it is chilly (ie jumpers). Also inside in Australian homes and workplaces in winter is famously freezing as nothing is insulated.
On shoes, Tickles is right, cheaper in the UK. But all the schools have different requirements so I'd wait.

I'd love to know where you are shopping, though, Tickles, because I was back in the Uk at the end of March and could not believe how cheap everything was. I find it eyewatering here. :)

Cropped trousers are very popular here especially among Ladies D'Un Certain Age. Cooler than trousers and not shorts!

I found, arriving mid summer, that my UK wardrobe was wildly inappopriate because i just didn't own enough hot weather clothing but you will be fine over winter. I found that last July (visiting) my kids wore essentially what they wore in most UK Julys!

Where did you decide to live?

Ooh, thanks everyone, I've been caught up in shipping quotes and booking stuff - we now have a stopover in Singapore and ONE WAY FLIGHTS booked [thud..]!

I'll just have to calm down won't I..! I will get a coat, as that's simple and DS will need it immediately we get there, but I'll see if shoes are on sales anywhere rather than stockpiling. I'll go for the cropped trouser route, I'm 41 and quite a bit (will be the answer the Life, the Universe and Everything on my 2nd Monday of full time Aussie work - happy birthday me!) so guess that's appropriate.

Roary, hi! We're still a bit phased by catchments etc, would like Duncraig but the rentals seem to be very old fashioned in our measly price range, so maybe Kinross? DH loves Sorrento from the school's rep, but I feel we'd be absolutely bottom of the pile rental wise so it all could go horribly wrong. We'll spend the first week we arrive looking at schools, then at rentals with a better idea of where we think DS would fit.

Right, back to the school run here. At least it's stopped raining for the first time in about 48 hrs, everyone's eyeing the rivers with suspicion - only in England can you get hosepipe bans and flood warnings!

My son went to Kindy at Kinross Primary,which was really good. Uniform there is bottle green shorts/trousers and white polos. I'd definitely stock up on white polo shirts.(Unfortunately (in terms of uniform) he's now in private, so has to be their uniform with logo only.)

Definitely shoes, several years ahead, and trainers. I recently tried to buy trainers here (for 5 year old). I couldn't find any suitable under $70 so had to buy him a girl's pair with blue trim and convince him they were boys.

Clothes, even in Target etc., are still more than the UK, so I have clothes for the next 3 years already!

Never needed a coat in winter, just cardie/jumper/fleece.

Give us a shout if you end up in Kinross and want any pointers - we're just next door.

Oh, you could stock up on adult clothes too - I always buy loads of stuff when I'm back in the UK as it's better quality for the same money.

And a Kindle, as books here are very expensive.

Ah, I have a Kindle, I just need to make sure it still thinks it's in the UK so I still get cheaper books via Amazon.

Actually, how does iTunes work - if you have money on a UK iTunes account, can you use it to buy (at UK prices) from Aus?

My Kindle happily buys UK books even though it's an Aussie credit card.

iTunes - not tried it, although I did use a UK account while living in Singapore so I can't see why not. I just use Aussie iTunes as sometimes the shops have discounts on iTunes vouchers.

You do NOT need a winter coat; you will never need one again unless you move to Melbourne, Tassie or back to the UK.

Yes to a raincoat and jumpers, and once your DCs get to secondary they will probably have a school blazer. Believe me, that's enough.

Cold enough for a coat, BTW, is a maximum daily temperature of 12 degrees.

(Random thoughts as I have them..........)

Adaptors and power boards/extension leads. Apparently it's illegal to change a plug unless you're a qualified electrician, plus a lot of houses don't have many sockets. I brought about 30 adaptors from Singapore yet never seem to have enough.

Throws - its getting quite nippy in the evenings. It definitely feels colder in the house sometimes than out - open plan is lovely but draughty. In fact managing the cold is more of an issue than managing the heat (but then we moved from Singapore so really felt the cold last year.)

My girls have never needed coats in the winter. They have rain macs for wet weather, but I can count on one hand how many times any of us (4) have worn a coat. Dd1 wears a fleece if it is 'really cold' but I can easily do the school run in a 3/4 sleeve tee!

A lot of schools here (primary for sure) are very geared toward 'fitness/sport' (dd1 does some kind of fitness everyday) for this reason, my girls only ever wear trainers (on advise of dd1's teachers). In dd1's primary, you would be hard pressed to find a proper school shoe.

You can buy from the uk iTunes in pounds.

This is just great, thanks so much. I am devastated at never having the chance to wear my full(ish) length down coat again though.. Not even with a t-shirt underneath? But I love that coat..! Right, that's it, cancel the tickets, I'm not going!

We've actually just bought a heated throw, as people have been saying about the cold in houses.

Keep those random thoughts coming! We're off to Meadowhall today for optician visits and essentials shopping - underwear mainly, as well as kitchenware stuff, I'll keep an eye out for adapters and power boards, especially in Poundland!

My grandmother used to put electric blankets on the bed which were just yummy! But my mother just used blankets and sheets when I was little and then duvets when they came into fashion (note; for some dumb reason they are called doonas in Oz.)

Agree with throws and rugs for the winter. And an electric fan heater or the like to keep your toes toasty.

And yes - it's illegal to change your own plugs in Australia; in any case, they have no fuse in them.

I brought all-weather duvets (I.e. thin plus thick) duvets but we only ever needed the thin ones last winter. Our house has reverse cycle air con (which means its also a heater in winter) which works quite well, but electricity is expensive.

If you have a coat I'd bring it, but not buy especially IYSWIM. I wear ankle boots in winter but never wore the long ones.

Other random stuff: I use Olay or Garnier moisturiser with SPF 15 which you can often get cheap in ASDA but it's about $20 here I think, so I bring loads back. Also those hair colour kits where you colour your hair then paint on streaks. I'm sure you probably can get them here but I haven't seen any for ages.

Well if you have a house with only a single fire like ours, you can wear your coat around the house :).

If you buy from the Body Shop, bring it from the UK! I use their shampoo - costs 3x the amount here, £12 instead of £4...