Primary school uniform and logos

[renlo]

My DD starts school in September. It's a state primary school and we knew they had a uniform which didn't bother us. Today, however, we got the joining instructions along with a list of compulsory school uniform items which includes navy polo shirts with the school logo, sweatshirts, cardigans, book bags and PE t-shirt all with the school logo. All these items are only available from the John Lewis in town.

I don't have a problem much with the other items but really object to having to pay £9 each for a logo'ed polo shirt when I can pick up a pack of three for the same price or less elsewhere, especially since we're likely to need about 5 of them and she'll probably go through them fairly quickly! I have rung the school office to ask if the polos must be logoed and they said yes as this is the school rules.

My question is, we're intending for my daughter to wear pinafore dress anyway so could we get away with a plain navy polo under the pinafore? Noone should be none the wiser on whether the polo is logoed or not (except when she takes it off for PE). Moreover, can the school insist my daughter wear a logoed polo shirt and would they be justified to exclude her as a result? I have read the home school agreement and it doesn't mention anything about being in the correct uniform, it's just stated in the admissions documents.

It seems absolutely ludicrous and having spoken to a few other mums with kids at other schools in the area, it's clear that they have more flexibility with logos on items, so not quite sure why ours is so strict and what if anything they can do to enforce it.

Does anyone have any experience of this + any advice on how to handle?

Thanks in advance.

Its not fair is it? I just checked our uniform suppliers, and the price of the polo shirts seem to have crept up to £7.80. I have three of those for DS1 and two sweatshirts which are just under a tenner. They seem to be lasting ok though (although they arent really the nice buttercup yellow they were in September - they have a grey tinge with the odd spag bol stain) and I think they'll last him next year too so whilst the initial outlay was a killer, the ongoing costs arent too bad. I do have to do a midweek wash.

Have just found this guidance on dfewebsite. I think you should take it up with governors and ht, as they seem to breaking all the guidelines

The governing body should be able to demonstrate how best value has been achieved and keep the cost of supplying the uniform under review.
consider the cost and availability of the proposed uniform

Consider the cost of including branded items and items in unusual colours/shades and continually review the cost of these items;

School uniform and other items that must be purchased in accordance with school rules can be expensive, and school governing bodies should therefore give high priority to the cost considerations. No school uniform should be so expensive as to leave pupils or their families feeling unable to apply to, or attend a school of their choice, due to the cost of the uniform.

Polo shirts £7.80

I buy my dd 3 for £4.00

In wouldn't buy 5 poloshirts of what ever sort to start with OP.

We have only ever had 3 or at most 4 shirts at a time for our DC.
Monday's shirt can be washed and ready by Thursday or Friday surely.

Our boys also tended to wear them for a couple days most of the time.

There is no legislation in place that deals specifically with school uniform or other aspects of appearance...

media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/pdf/s/school%20uniform%20guidance%202012.pdf

I've always had 5 polo shirts each for my kids. I don't want to be running the washing machine with just a few bits in it so that I can re-use polo shirts in the same week, I'm pretty sure that over the 2 years they wear them that would cost more than an extra couple of polo shirts to start with, not to mention the convenience. Perhaps mine are particularly mucky but it's rare they get more than one day of wear out of them. Then there's are white (and have logos)...

Children don't get any cheaper as they get older I'm afraid!

Really, do try to get a look at what kids actually wear. DD's school used to specify their (nasty, acrylic) logoed jumpers and cardigans, but not many kids actually wore them. I live on the school run route though, so easy to observe! They still advertise, but don't specify them - they do still specify the tie though, and that's not universally worn at all.

*theirs not there's!

Ugh, what is it with acrylic and school uniforms. Why can't they just be cotton? Technically acrylic is supposed to add warmth, but all it does is add tacky sheen ime

I don't disagree with the uniform per se, just really don't see the need for logos on the polos in addition to logos on cardis + sweatshirts when every other school it seems takes a more sensible approach. Also noting that navy polos are not that widely available...

Guess its our own fault for not checking the uniform policy thoroughly before we applied it accepted the school place.

Ours is logoed, but have only bought one new polo shirt and one new cardigan, all the rest is from secondhand shop. They go in 'new' ones on first day of school, and photos (if I remember). Even faded ones can be dyed back to new as the cotton for the logo doesn't take a dye but the clothes do. Pinafore dresses do protect quite well. I would also buy a size or two up, dd2 is v small but can carry off a size 26 under a pinafore.

Ring and ask when next secondhand sale is, and the smallest ones are most likely to be there, along with the biggest ones, people buy little ones which actually fit in reception, then they realise that children grow quickly so buy baggy to grow into, then sell them all when the youngest leaves for secondary.

Can they be dyed? They can if 100%cotton, but not mixed fibre. Polo shirts usually cotton but ime sewatshirts often ave acrylic in them

Cheap (as in a fiver a pack) plain navy polos are a bugger to find ime. Red, white, pale blue, pale yellow easy. Navy, notso.

£9 is absurd though. Ds's logo polos for secondary don't cost that much!

Tiggytape is right. schools can take steps to enforce school uniform, but they have to be reasonable. What reasonable means is open to interpretation, but it certainly isn't the case that parents can simply opt out of the school uniform.

Anyway, there is OFT guidance against creating monopolies for the supply if school uniform, so having uniform available in John Lewis is in breach of that. You could take that up with the governors - if there was another sillier, prices might come down.

This has been much discussed on previous threads, which should show up if you search for them.

I think Asda do navy ones. Agree that ds's se condary school polo shirts cost less than £9.00. Seem to remember they were £2.99 for a males size m at Matalan

Ah. So many auto correct typos.

If there was another supplier...

We have a similar problem. The school sells polyester sweatshirts and cardies and they are horrid. So I bought really good quality cotton equivalents and wait here comes the science bit use velcro tabs to stick the logo from an old one on them. So I can take it off and put it on whatever is clean. This does take a bit of remembering so you don't lose the badge but is easy enough to do

Have had a look online at Asda - they don't do navy ones unfortunately but their white ones are 100% cotton so might be able to dye them navy perhaps as someone has suggested? Have never dyed anything before so not sure how easy it'd be or even if there is a navy dye!

Ah, prices have risen. Largest size boys (that's a men's XL) is £10.50. But even so, £9 for a teeny tiny YR child's polo is stupid.

You can o it in the washing machine with Dylon navy dye. You may end up with white stitching though as the thread used to stitch them may contain poyester, and white buttons.

Have looked on all main chain store uniform suppliers. None of them do navy, not even John Lewis. I bet Amazon will have them though

www.amazon.co.uk/Fruit-Loom-Childrens-Pique-Shirt/dp/B005JDID8E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338225269&sr=8-1.

Amazon, still 4 quid though

I wouldn't bother trying to dye shirts, op, for the reasons oranges states.

orange - thanks. Annoyingly, the amazon seller charges the same amount of postage per item so if I buy 3, I pay 3 lots of p&p which is crap ! I've found a seller on ebay: cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270920901419&var=570060716742#ht_2154wt_922 doing em for 2.99 each with 2.50 p&p for 3 or 4. The material mix is the same as the logo'd polos from John Lewis! 65% polyester and 35% cotton. For all that money,the JL ones aren't even 100% cotton like Asda's!

Thank you all again for the help and advice.

cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270920901419&var=570060716742#ht_2154wt_922

State primary schools aren't allowed to insist that pupils wear a uniform, and they aren't allowed to make people buy items that are only available from one supplier, either.

Guidance Government guidance

Office of Fair Trading Issue
OFT

Trutex (alternative non logoed supplier for very many things)
Trutex