Mums of very thin reception girls, pls help!

[kisaki333]

I have ordered (and mostly returned) at least £300 worth of school trousers in the last month I can't find a single one that looks ok and fits.
Some of the ones with adjustable waist can be adjusted to fit the waist but they look like she did a big poo in her nappy (she obviously doesn't wear one! )
To make it worse, all the adjustable waist ones are polyester. ALL the cotton pull ones I found don't have an adjustable waist. Whyyyyy???
So far we tried:
Next (best results so far but still bad)
M&S
ASDA found one slim fit that has really bad reviews saying it's much too slim lol. This one is ok, but feels poor quality.
Sainsbury's
Various Amazon brands with 0 success

Anyone managed to find something that actually looks ok on a slim petite 4.5yo and with good quaility? Preferably cotton?

And before you say about dresses, i don't want her in dresses, she is very active and a climber, she won't be able to do everything she wants in a dress.

In day to day she lives in leggings but the school won't accept those (how crazy is that, why not?!)

If leggings are off the table then (like we had to) only option are summer dresses and pinafores.

Skirts/trousers even slim fit were just a no go.

Can you just put her in leggings with a pinafore on top?

So wearing them instead of tights rather than instead of trousers.

No uncomfortable tights, and school more likely to be ok with it.

Flared leggings from Matalan are the best we’ve found. For just like regular leggings but look slightly more trouser ish. They had them in dark grey last winter which looked fine as school uniform.

DD wears dresses or skirts with shorts or tights mostly though. Her school actively encourage tree climbing etc. and it’s never been an issue.

Mine didn't have trousers until about year 4. They wore a pinifore with Woolly tights in the winter then a summer dress. Have you actually gone to a school shop to see if they have any

Boys'school shorts instead! That's what mime wore year-round. The length doesn't matter like trousers so you can buy a smaller age to fit her waist. They start at age 3-4 at M&S.

Why wont something like this work?

https://tuclothing.sainsburys.co.uk/product/tuc144250156

For the summer I would buy the smallest gingham dress and take the hem up. Make the hem large and folded twice so you can let it down multiple times. For winter stick with dresses, then have leggings underneath with socks. As long as the leggings are reasonable quality and don't bag at the knee, it very much has the look of a dress and tights. I used to have to do this with my 2 girls who hated the feel of tights.

Cotton uniform is expensive, especially when you need multiples of it. And uniform is designed for the majority, so the very slim and very tall will struggle to find trousers. Mixing these requirements together will only cause you expensive heartache. As with PP DD wore dresses with tights or shorts, or jersey pull on trousers like these
Buy 2 Pack Grey Jersey Trousers 5 years | PE kits | Tu share.google/2LYrVUxUGU4QTCWfa

One of your requirements will have to change, size, material or cost?

Also, the smallest size gingham from.m&s still is almost like a maxi dress on her - can you climb a climbing frame safely in that? Or ride a bike?

It's incredibly easy to shorten dresses.

I would buy yourself a stitch gun as it makes taking in clothes really easy. My daughter wears flared leggings from next to school. I would try the flared leggings and see if the school say anything. They're 95% cotton. My children won't wear tights either and they don't like wearing polyester so it does make uniform shopping harder.

H&M girl's school trousers have an adjustable waist band.

But I'm more intrigued by all the hardcore climbing a reception aged child is going to do at school that means a pinafore is unsuitable!

I wouldn't buy school playsuits. Something that has to be taken off completely and dropped to the potentially wee covered floor? No thanks.

I always got longer length so that I could buy a younger age for the waist. Asda always used to do them also M&S I know do

In Reception?!

I have to take the waist in in nearly all my daughters’ trousers/shorts, school and home clothes!

We do like the girls school shorts as they have adjustable waists and are generally baggy enough not to look weird when taken in. My eldest won’t wear tights but also doesn’t really get cold so she just wears long socks in the winter.

www.marksandspencer.com/2-pack-girls-pleat-front-shorts-4-14-yrs-/p/clp60776992?color=GREY#intid=carousel_FUNH_AT_PHOENIX-SIMILAR_END_PDP_16_1:23802eb8-8094-4c3d-99eb-4734cb65bf43

H&M?

Reception seemed to involve a lot of crawling around floors. The only year the tops of DC's shoes wore worse than the soles. That's enough to prefer trousers for me. It's just comfier and they're more likely to get stuck in freely. Some schools have all receptioners wear joggers/leggings, which I think is really sensible.

We dealt with the looking like she had a nappy on.

She then refused to wear anything but pinafores, which solved the issue.

DS wears trousers from vertbaudet which are cut slimmer. Also Next Chinos stay up well as they are structured so dont fall and you can ammend the waist. David Luke PE shorts have strong elastic. I keep him in the grey shorts as long as poss (M/S start at age 2)

But really dresses/gymslips will be fine, DD doesnt wear tights in winter, just socks and pinafore and she's fine (NB we are in london not the highlands tho).

I also got DS braces at one point although they are a faff

School uniform shops tend to have trousers and shorts in smaller sizes as they usually cater to prep schools that include pre schools.

I think you're making this more complicated than it needs to be. Dresses with shorts underneath and knee high socks would avoid tights. Or Next do lovely soft bootleg school trousers. You could buy smaller size but opt for longer length. I have very slim girls. Both started school in age 3 school uniform and we've never had any issues.

https://www.next.co.uk/style/ST057730/812488

Start in age 3, choose long length. Come in black, grey, navy.

I am this mum!!!! But to a very slim boy who has long legs, most trousers don’t fit him and he, at 5, is in 2-3 year old shorts.

ASDA has been my go to, their trousers and skirts have elastic that is adjustable all the way around, so about 6 button holes, not the typical two, they’re fantastic as they can fit a huge range of waist sizes. But you have to go in store (the bigger the store the better) and buy @kisaki333, don’t trust online. Go in and try stuff on. I bought some more online after the first lot and got it wrong as not all their trousers have this (they do for boys and girls I believe and I think there are skirts with this adjustments too).

ETA - it’s interesting that people are just dismissing you and saying just wear a dress. As the mum of a boy who wouldn’t wear a dress, it is an issue for slimmer kids and there should be options for our children.

I agree with H&M, and with making sure you’re not narrowing your options by choosing only girls clothing.

There's nothing a 4.5 year old can't do in a dress - it's actually much less restricting than trousers. If you're concerned about modesty (for a 4.5 year old?) put cycle shorts underneath.

Dresses and pinafore are perfect for stick-thin children with no waist to hold up skirts and trousers. That's why they're used so often in early years uniforms.

My daughter is the same, very slim and an active climber. She wears dresses and tights, they don’t impede her playing. In the summer she wears bike shorts under her school dress. Tbh, they don’t do a lot of climbing at school. If you want her to be able to play on the way home, you could pack a pair of leggings to change into.
i understand why you would prefer her to wear trousers but honestly, just let it go. If you take this approach to every aspect of her schooling, you will be exhausted!