Which supermarket for best school trousers, etc? How many to get??

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Sorry, this is embarassingly mundane amid all the angst about school appeals and other worries , but I need to start thinking about school trousers and so on for DS1. Don't want to leave it to the last few weeks, and I don't want to spend a fortune in M&S or similar. DS1 needs plain grey trousers and ideally, I'd like semi-elasticated or elasticated waists, as he's not great with waistband buttons yet. Would hate for him to wet himself while wrestling himself out of his school trousers!

I have no idea how many pairs he'll need. We'll aim to get him out of his school clothes as soon as he's home, but he always comes back from preschool completely filthy, so I'm imagining I'll need to change trousers every day or two. We also need boring stuff like grey socks, plain white shirts, red polo shirts, and plain white and black sports kit. I'm buying his sweatshirts from school. And trainers, plimsols.... the list goes on, and his is not a formal school. Where do savvy parents get all this gubbins - are the supermarket bargains actually bargains or do they not wear well?

M&S have a 20% off offer at the moment off all schoolwear. I find their trousers are good (and have an adjustable waistband)but I think they are standard for most shops.

M&S also have no-iron shirts that work well, but if your son is anything like mine, I need to replace them frequently as school dinners and white cotton don't mix.

Again, leaving it until July is usually when the shops have run out of the sizings, so now is as good a time as any to buy.

I would also go on a shirt a day, perhaps 3 pr of trousers/shorts ....

My sons are in years 2 and 1.

When ds1 started in reception I bought trousers etc from Asda. they were crap. Baggy old fashioned style that wore through the knees in no time. The polo shirts were not good quality.

After one term I ditched them all and went with Next. They are a bit more expensive - but so far both boys have had a year's wear out of the trousers and they were in good enough condition to pass on to a friend. No way could I have done that with the asda ones. Next ones also do 'slim fit' which my sons really need - the asda and tesco trousers looked like clown pants on them.

The polo shirts are fine you just put them on a hot wash with a 'whites' powder, hang them outside on the line whenever possible and they stay fresh and white. I dont' use fabric conditioner and I'm sure that helps prevent 'greying'.

Shops only run out of the smaller sizes in July because of new parents buying tons more than they need, far earlier than they need to! (yes I was one of those). I order in store from the directory and pay, and they are delivered to my house usually the next day.

Next and M&S uniforms are more expensive, but work out far cheaper in the long run imo.

I have used both bhs and Next trousers and both have lasted well. I get socks, gym shorts, etc from asda/tesco, etc

I get mine from Asda. In my experience they have worn and washed well. As far as I remember the younger sizes had elastiated bands, but my youngest in 9 now.

A tip for all buying uniform for the first time - when you have found the ones you like, get at least one pair in the next size up to put away, because when you need them through the year they won't have the size!

I also get white shirts and polo shirts from Asda. I have found if I hang the shirts up from the washing machine, they very rarely need ironing, especially as they are usually under a jumper.

I would aim for 3 sets - one on, one off and one in the wash.

I used to get my DC to change out of their uniform, but if they come back grubby and get changed it just means 2 sets of grubby clothes.

Hmm. I'm being advised to go M&S by some friends, but I think they tend to spend more money on their DC's clothes than we do! (I've got a massive stash of really good quality American boys' joggers and informal trousers which go up to about age 9, and in which DS1 lives (he hates jeans) because my American nephew doesn't wear a uniform.) Ok, I'll give the M&S discount a look, and have a look at Asda too. He's a skinny lad, so I don't think baggies would look good...

We use M&S: I have some trousers now worn for a year by both of my boys which still have plenty of life in them. Mine are skinny so I went for M&S flat-fronted trousers with adjustable waists.

For shirts, I ordered trutex ones online - they were a bit more expensive but my eldest son has had two years wear out of them and will pass them down to my next son.

I got tracksuit stuff and socks from M&S but that was down to convenience and the fact they have a 20% offer in June.

For shorts, I've got John Lewis every time because I prefer the style and they wear very well.

M&S arent too bad really. Any trousers we have had have been destroyed quite quickly (shorts tend to last longer). Their shirts are good value (2 or 3 pack non-iron - although I end up ironing them), and I get the sports shorts and socks there too. I use JL sometimes too but since I discovered that M&S do an online order that can delivery to any M&S store for pick up, I get mose there for convenience (as I am close to a store but it doesnt do kids clothes).

I tend to get 3 packs of 3 shirts (he is a very messy child), 2 shorts (sports and uniform) and 3 trousers. Loads of white sports socks. He is a messy kid! When they have the 20% sale, its a good time to stock up.

Sainsburys school trousers, easy iron, adjustable waist, pull on style. £4 for two pairs. Far better than the M&S ones I bought last year.

Sainsbury's are pretty good too. My DS is a tiny little thing in reception and their age 4 fit him well. They are elasticated. He has 2 pairs of trousers and 6 shirts (they always come in packs of 2 or 3) and two school jumpers.

Sainsburys have been brill bought them every year for the past four and never had holes in them or hem dropping and the waist bands at fully adjustable, always get 2 pairs which last the week although I do a mid week wash if they are dirty

Tesco ones are rubbish, bottoms frayed in the second week of school!

M&S are really good quality and definitely worth the extra money. Cheap supermarket ones are imo a false economy as they'll wear out much quicker. DS1 has two pairs plus one pair of shorts.

I use m and s too - via quidco as often cashback on top of discount- they're trousers just seem to last...tried next and sainsburys both looked knackered really quickly.... ds slim so get the long leg ones as can go down a size age wise and they fit without loads of bunching, not so impressed with their polo shirts but are ok - easier to get it all together
in reception, yr 1, 2 had 4 pairs trousers for ds - messy child and will find any mud hoping for 3 next year!
polos m&s do pack of 3 I got 3 packs in reception and was glad as the paint they use doesn't seem to come out...
1 logo polo for photos
hth

I find Tescos trousers and shorts fine. [BHS used to do no clip trousers up to about age 6 I think].

Sainsburys school trousers are great, better than Asda or Tesco IME. As to cost, i think they are all much of a muchness (i.e. maybe one charges £6 for two pairs and another is £5.50 but there's really not much in it).

My top tip would be to buy at least three pairs of trousers in your son's current size and 3 pairs in his next size up whilst its easy to get school uniform in the shops. Otherwise you may well end up spending £s on petrol driving around trying to find a shop that stocks the size you need towards the end of the winter.

I got a bundle of 5 pairs of (second hand) age 4-5 grey trousers from ebay for a grand total of £7.99 waaay back when dc started school. Dc2 has now worn them too.

At that price we've been able to laugh off rips and indelible stains by binning them/cutting them down for shorts.

Now I realise that I got an absolute bargain and we are a household that embraces re-use/reduce/recycle but those second hand trousers were George (Asda) and thye've now been worn by 3 children at least so I'd vote for Asda.

(or ebay if you don't mind second hand)

combination of M&S and Sainsburys here

Thanks everyone - really helpful tips!

M&S def excellent quality, & price not too bad when they're on 3 for 2.

DS2 wore the same 3 pairs - which I bought on ebay, Cokeaholic - through Y7 & Y8 (& maybe into Y9, I can't remember now) & they were still like new at the end

I use sainsburys, and of all the supermarkets found theirs lasted well and fitted my DSs best.
I would recommend getting a pair or the next size up PE pumps now as although supermarkets tend to stock school uniform throughout the year, pumps never seem to be available in the right sizes!

I have had good wear out of trousers from Asdas, tesco and sainsburies (ds is 9. dd1 is 7) I think the fit depends on your childs shape (dd is hard to fit, ds is skinny and hates button elastics as they dig in)

white shirts though - last year i had ds from M&S and dd from asda and I really notided that the M&s ones have washed and worn much better, kept their shape and colour and haven't shrunk. (I don't tumble dry and I never iron school shirts - smooth and fold and wear under sweater!)
A friend has also recommended debenhams shirts to me

pe stuff from anywhere it never wears out. daps/plimsols, differnt shops sizes vary enormously.

My ds can wear one pair of trousers for a week. Dd went through a pair a day in reception. How many you need depends on how often you wash. All our uniform goes in the wash on friday night, so I have to have enough to last the week.

Buy now, they run out of sizes. If you find a pair you really like the look and fit of, buy the next size up too!

I found M&S seems to be the best for wash and wear and not hugely different on price. Worth the bit extra if it means not replacing things every few months. Have also used Tesco in the past and not bad either - they have a scheme with some schools where they do the school logo on sweatshirts etc. so worth looking to see if your school are registered with them.

M&S on offer.

DS needs a clean uniform every day...

You might pick up sweaters etc cheaply if school has a second hand sale.

Practice going to the loo in the new outfit before starting school, and pop a spare pair of pants and socks in the PE bag (and tell him they're there!) just in case of a small accident

So the general consensus is to buy a couple of pairs of trousers in the next size up? I was wondering how hard it would be to find uniform mid year. I think shirts should be fine in current size / a little on the big size but DS can have wicked growth spurts and practically overnight it seems his trousers are all suddenly an inch short!

I have bought one set of 2 stormwear trousers from M&S to gauge the size so I think I'll get another set of 2 (£7 for the 2 pair) and then another set in size up, plus two packs of 3 shirts and socks... 2 sweatshirts should be ok... maybe I should get 3... PE kit from school... and book bag too. So much to remember!!!

Ooooh and dont forget labels / sharpie!

I have two boys, one heading up to high school and the other going next year. No supermarket brands are the best, they are all shite and don't last. They are a false economy - what do they give you, a 30 day guarantee or something??

Go to next, pay a bit more and they will last you all year. I buy them 2 pairs each for the start of the year and they last all year and look as good at the end as they did the first week! When they existed, Adams polo shirts were the best, Next are ok, Sainsburys collars go a bit funny, Tesco go a bit misshapen, M&S shrink and they are also built for short fat children and are made really small - still looking for the holy grail in polo shirts but mine will be in shirt and tie soon so will give up shortly :)

I prefer Sainsbury's trousers to Asda. I got 3 pairs - 1 on, 1 to wash, 1 drying. The the trick is to buy the next size during the 25% sales. They just felt nicer both to me and DS and seemed to fit a little better.

DS wore his all through reception and I didn't need to replace them until he grew out of them Also when they go up a size and get proper flies, the Asda buttons are quite stiff whereas Sainsbury's have a catch instead of a button

I tend to buy Asda polos, they are softer, seem to fit better and I found there was slight shrinkage in the Sainsbury's ones and they tended to lose their soft feeling after a few washes.

[smile)