School shoes question

[SparklyOnTheInside]

Hi, I hope this is the right place to ask..

I would be really grateful if anyone could advise me on school shoes for my DD, She starts high school next month so is becoming more aware of styles that she is into. she had DCD (dyspraxia) so wants to avoid shoe laces.

Her school won't allow ballet flats, but we would avoid anyway as she has hypermobile ankles and flat feet so needs a bit of support. She also has SPD so some textures don't work for her either.

I realise that we have left it a bit late to sort out.. There are lots of reasons for this but mostly to do with an injury that has stopped her trying on shoes.

Any advice would be appreciated by me and DD, thank you

Ds is older but kickers hi-tops have been a godsend. They are unisex designs up to an adult size 2 in velcro. Although I have to say we use laces even though ds can't do them as they are far more supportive

Is she getting physio and insoles

Hi, Thanks for replying so fast!
We're waiting for a referral atm for a podiatrist to assess her feet so not using insoles. She's having OT but finished with physio for the moment (I think because of her age)

We're keen to avoid laces if possible because she can sort of do them if she is calm, quiet and relaxed. But not if we're out, for example in a shop with other people then no way.. It becomes a massive stress response.

She's had a tough time in primary school and I am keen to avoid any additional stress in transistion to "big" school..

I will have a look at thre kickers, thank you.

I will have a look at the start rite website with DD.. she's quite keen to move away from the mary-jane/tbar type styles from primary school now (and to be honest those have never been supportive for her ankles and feet imho)

We'll see how we get on. Not sure if we should try to get some temporary shoes until after the podiatrist appointment in case they want us to ditch certain styles. Bit of a minefield!

Dr m's mentioned above have a few junior styles with zips up the inside. I'm not sure how small they went. They are Ideal because you can adjust the laces to give good support. DS wouldn't even try them sadly. I think they were too heavy for him. We came to the same conclusion about peadro boots but he tires easily. In winter it is easier as he has a beautiful pair of ricostta "snow boots". Velcro supportive and lightweight. Pretty sure they come in girls too

Keep at it we found the right shoes for ds really do make a massive difference.

Glad you are still getting OT. Physio often discharge too early so keep an eye on that. We found insoles quite fantastic but certainly not a cure all.

Sorry I miss read and though she was starting primary school!!!!

Definitely Dr m's with zips. Kickers do not go up larger velcro wise. Otherwise take a look at no tie shoelaces and see whther your dd would get on with them if only for pe and trainers

Podiatry will probably recommend that you have a shoe with a good "heel cup" (firm around the heel), a firm sole that you can't twist and adjustable over the top. You may need shoes slightly bigger to take the insole. We found we needed I little higher ankle support too. There is an argument for hanging on. It can be a wait

I can pretty much guarentee Your podiatrist will approve of either kickers or Dr martens.

You may need a quiet word with school. Kickers even the high tops don't really look different enough to bother. The right Dr martens will be a little different if they have a no boots principle. However they really are a very sensible shoe. Thankfully ds' (primary) school took the approach they didn't care what he wore on his feet if it helped him stop sprain in his ankle

We have had to have laces for Dd3 for years to get the support she needed but most days I could tie them in the morning and that would be it until she came home. Other than that lock laces are great.

Ricosta and Petasil both do good supportive shoes that have removable insoles that can be replaced with orthotics when/if she gets them.

We ended up with Kicker hi tops that were hybrids they were almost a trainer but not quite and she had a pass to show any teacher who made a fuss although I dont think any did.

Actually stiff trainers are way better than most school shoes in terms of support and well done to her school for banning those ridiculous ballet flats that are ruining many girls feet

We have been to 2 podiatrists, one said converse were ok and they come in all black one said they were no good as the sole was too bendy!!

Who knows, I am celebrating not having to buy school shoes this year for the first time in 22 yrs!!

Good luck

There are some good leads there.. Thank you!

It's slightly driving me mad.. we could have a go with no tie laces I suppose. I am quite keen to avoid her being stressed, but I also want her to be independent.. I am sure that the styles I used to wear at school in the 90s would be perfect, I wish they were still around.

Ideally her shoes would stop her falling all the time.. But we haven't had much luck with any type of shoe so far.

Sorry to hijack.

Ineedmorepatience, your lock laces are they elastic? Did they still offer good support?

I have a pair here in the packaging that I am a little nervous trying on DS as I'm worried they will stretch and not offer as good ankle support.

Kickers made a massive difference to DS stability and the damage when he does fall. But they are laces

Yes the lock laces we had were elastic but its very strong, they were designed for triathletes so I am sure they must rely on them for support while running.

Orthotics alone helped Dd3 with falling less initially but her floppy ankles have got worse as she has got bigger and now we are waiting for an orthopedic appointment!

Dd wore hush puppies velcro, they did to adult size 5. They were the only style we could get that would accommodate her hypermobility and orthotic insoles.

Oh wow, so many ideas, thanks so much

I think we have to investigate the lock laces too - not sure what kind of shoes we'll end up with. We tried to look at different shoes and styles with DD yesterday and she was very negative about anything supportive. Cue stress insomnia overnight.

I will show her this thread and we can look at all of your suggestions together and hopefully find something that works!

DD wanted brogues but cannot tie laces quickly or securely, so we found some buckle brogues from Clarks.

Have also found some new elastic laces for her trainers which look almost like normal laces.

Like these but from ebay

Dd ( starting year 8 next week) is under a podiatrist for her problem feet and lower legs. She has insoles too.
Last 2 terms she had these
They were good and had a good amount of support
She's gone for a clarks lace up pair this term ( you could use with elasticated laces? . This is what I did with my sons shoes
These are the ones she went for
here
She is very fashion conscious .. Both pairs were acceptably cool it appears
Good luck

Apparently those laces a look interesting (so says DD)

We're still on the hunt for shoes.. Really appreciating all the excellent shoe ideas from this thread

I've got ds kickers to start secondary school in. They are high up around ankle, his orthotics fit in them and they are Velcro - even though a size 3!
It's a test though as he's been in boots up until now!

I'm not sure what styles they do for girls but it's worth a look.

Kickers have a style called Adlar T youth which are Velcro fastening.

Or verda triple youth

Or kick bar bow youth

Sorry I'm flicking back and forth between the website I bookmarked when I got ds'. I'll just link the page for you it will be easier!