Back to School: How to kit out your kids for less

Parents having to fork out for branded school uniforms are being offered budget-friendly ways to keep the costs down.

The frugal experts at NetVoucherCodes.co.uk have seen hundreds of mums and dads on their sister site ParentBible struggling to pay the huge costs associated with branded school uniforms.

Their army of parents have been offering helpful ways to save on the costs of the expensive outgoing.

Popular schemes such as uniform swaps and pre-loved giveaways are providing parents with extra support to help prepare for the academic year.

Ellie Macsymons from NetVoucherCodes.co.uk said: “We wanted to help parents who may be worrying about the dreaded costs of new school uniforms.

Parents are doing uniform swaps to save on the back-to-school costs/Image: Unsplash

“It’s becoming more difficult for families to balance household expenses during this cost-of-living crisis, which is why many are looking for money saving tips to spend less on new school uniforms.

“We’ve found some parents are joining online community groups to find second-hand uniforms as well as going directly to the school to receive free school uniforms.”

One parent, CJ Walt, said: “Top tip- join the secondary schools parents facebook groups – they’re always selling very cheap or free during the start of the six weeks as loads of kids are leaving or have grown out of their stuff. Then advertise your grown out stuff – works great and everyone gets a good deal!”

Another parent, Nicki Blair, added: “We put money away monthly from January for uniform, Xmas and birthdays.”

Here are NetVoucherCodes.co.uk’s top ways to save on branded school uniform costs:

Hand me downs

Don’t be afraid to use hand me downs. If a blazer for one child fits the younger one when they’ve outgrown it, then make good use of it. Don’t just share hand me downs with siblings – if you and your friends all have children at the same school, then make use of that network.

Uniform swap

It’s becoming a popular trend among parents to help save some extra cash. There may be an online group for your local school where you can easily swap uniforms such as a ‘year 4’ top for some ‘year 5’ trousers. It’s always best to do it just before the academic year starts.

Look out for ‘pre-loved giveaways’

Check around selling groups for members who are selling bundles of school uniforms as part of free giveaways. These are often first come first serve, so make sure to turn post notifications on!

Shop around at different retailers

Explore various shops which are selling packs of uniform items for your unbranded clothing.This will further help when buying multiple packs to last throughout the year.

Spread the costs

Have a look at where you can put away the spare £10 or £20 every week and allocate it directly for school uniforms. If you save these extra pennies, you’ll be able to have a higher budget for the start of the academic year.

Keep your eyes peeled

It’s always worth keeping an eye out for any discounts or voucher codes. These can make a big difference to the school uniform spend.

Go directly to the school

Many parents aren’t aware of this tip but heading straight to the schools is a great way to get free school uniforms. Lots of kits are donated at the end of the academic year and these are usually available for collection in the first month of re-opening.

For more ways to save on back-to-school costs, head over to NetVoucherCodes.co.uk.