I’m starting to get ready for the kids going back to school in September, we need new book bags, new packed lunch boxes, new shoes and new uniforms!!!
There’s no money saving to be done in the new book bags and packed lunch boxes as the kids are extremely choosy about what they want here, apparently, Miss Frugal could not possibly go to school with a plain pink packed lunch box as it’s absolutely essential that she has the new Hello Kitty one that she’s seen and as for Master Frugal, I tried to suggest he used the same Scooby Doo book bag and was met with absolute outrage. I have been reliably informed (by him) that NO-ONE uses the same book bag as they used the year before, although how someone in reception would know that, I do not know.
So it looks like my money saving will need to be in the school uniform department. Which is why I was rather pleased to find a bargain school uniform round up on Moneysavingexpert.com. There’s actually some pretty good bargains to be had this year which will help with my money saving 😉
Here’s the cheapest:
Matalan – £4 for ages 4 to 7 and £6 for ages 8 to 11, they’re including a polo top or shirt for £1, a sweatshirt for £1 and a skirt or pair of trousers for £2.
Marks and Spencers – £9.50 for a full school uniform for 3-6 year olds at M&S. The uniform’s part of the M&S value range and includes a cotton polo shirt from £1 (although they only sell them at £3 for a pack of 3), a pair of trousers or a skirt with adjustable waists from £3.50 and a pure cotton jumper from £2. M&S are advertising the whole uniform for £6.50, but as you can’t buy the polo shirts individually it actually works out to £9.50.
Tesco – £3.75 for a full school uniform from their value range. A polo shirt for 50p, crease resistant trousers or a skirt for £1.50 and a sweatshirt for just £1.75, all for ages 3-16 years. This is part of their value range so it’s only available in around 200 of their stores though. Alternatively, you could get five school uniform items at Tesco for £12 as part of Tesco’s Back To School bundle- you can get any coat, 3 pack shirts, trousers or skirt or pinafore for £12.
Asda – £7 for a full uniform from Asda’s George school wear range. For boys you can get a 2 pack shirts or polo tops, a jumper and trousers for £7 and for girls a 2 pack shirts or polo tops, a cardigan and a skirt or a pair of trousers for £8.
Even Morrisons are branching out in to the school uniform market with their £2 range offering trousers, skirts, vests and plimsolls at just £2.
So there you go, no reason to spend a fortune on your little darlings uniform – after all, it’s only going to get covered in paint/snot/food/mud/pen/glitter/blood* within the first half an hour they are back at school!
* delete as appropriate (or not in my case as they’re all things my kids shirts regularly get covered in)
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Thanks for this!
I have Kieran to kit out before September, and will be going to Tesco to have a look first. I'm hoping they do the trousers for very skinny but tall four year olds!
I always have problems getting Miss Frugal clothes because she is so skinny. For a skirt to fit round the waist we have to get smaller sizes and they are so short that her dad has a fit lol. She's filling out a bit now though so hopefully uniform shopping will be easier this year 😉
Wow thank you for doing all that lovely research for us! I agree with a lot of people on here that the M&S range seems to last the best – but then again my boys grow so quickly that they tend to grow out of the clothes long before they wear out!
What is it about boys growing so fast, my 5 year old seems to grow bigger everyday…. As for shoes, he goes through them so fast that I have stopped buying the more expensive ones.
I bought M&S last year and was very disappointed with the quality of some of the items – they washed up really badly. I'm going to try some of the cheaper items this year to see how they work out.
I liked the M&S trousers that I bought last year but I must admit that I bought the cheaper tops because they get ruined so easy and it seems like a waste buying the expensive tops.
That's a brilliant deal – Thanks very much x x
I have to say I learnt the hard way that cheep doesnt always mean good value and I have opted for the M&S range this year, as it lasts, washes well and has adjustable waist bands. Plus it is on three for two with free delivery.
Matalan jumpers go shapeless
Tesco trousers were too big on the waist
The best shirts I have ever had were from Woolies. I find that propper shirts wash better than polo shirts, where the collars tend to go a different colour to the shirt.
I know what you mean about quality and I must admit that I like the M&S range too. I didn't realise it was on 3 for 2 at the minute – might have to get down there 😉