Vent! Flaming School Uniform!

moggylover

Now, I need to start by saying that I thoroughly approve of school uniform but I did think that we had moved on in common sense since the days when the Grammar schools always had ridiculously expensive and excessive uniform needs and requirements and that the local comps had people with "sensible heads" on deciding what would and would not be needed!

My sons have just given me the list of "new" games kit that will be required from September. They were given this list on the last day of school, and once I had read it I could understand that they would not want to be in the office when parents were presented with it.

In the past they have always had to have white polo shirts with the school logo on (although why they should need a logo unless representing the school on one of the teams I have never quite been sure) at a cost of £13.50 each, and a rugby shirt at £18 (and more for the bigger sizes).

New list requires:

Black/red polo shirts @ £13.50

SAMURAI rugby jersey @ (wait for it:eek:) age 11/12 £21
adults £27:eek:

Black/red waterproof jacket junior £13.50
adults £17.65

Now, that is on top of their actual school uniform and whilst both my lads are slim, even the 12 year old is going to need the adults size in both the jersey and the waterproof jacket cos they are not generously sized:mad:

Am I the only parent that thinks that some of the people making decisions in schools must be paid far too much money and have far too little to spend it on when brand name goods become part of the required uniform?

I really don't mind so much with DS1, he is on the school rugby team, and athletics team and thus goes off school grounds and needs to represent the school smartly. However, DS2 will also be required to have these items just in order to do normal games lessons on campus and I am absolutely tamping at the waste of such a large sum of money on what is only cheap polyester rubbish but with a brand name which doubles its cost:mad:

I am trying to calm down enough to word a letter to both the school and the LEA expressing my disgust at exhorbitant sport kit requirements, but I suspect I shall still be tamping when the new term starts:(

I'm certain that some people will think I am over-reacting, but I really don't think I am! I've always been annoyed that the schools expect uniforms to come from specialist local shops so that they can have silly logos on sub-standard but over-priced items (and have told the school this before which did result in the prices improving a little). You can buy better quality polos in Tesco and Asda than the rubbish we pay £13.50 for which falls apart at the placket and around the neck within the first term and bobbles all over, but because all the local businesses refuse to make separate badges for sewing on and refuse to embroider your own product you are stuck with their over-priced, poor quality tat:(

I feel so much better for getting that off my chest:D Sorry:D

Snoozle

I think it has always been the same in one way or another. Twenty years ago when I started secondary school, the list of stuff that was compulsory was unbelievable. One item that I clearly remember was that we were 'required' to have our own tennis racket - in seven years at the school, I didn't get on the tennis court once because only tennis team members (i.e. the kids who had had tennis lessons outside of school) were allowed to play on the school tennis courts.

We also had to buy school branded exercise books, diaries etc, we weren't allowed to use bog standard exercise books from a stationery shop. Some schools just stick the arm in!

Mupette

I am so glad DS is in his final year for uniform, if he does 6th form he can wear his own clothes.

i grumbled about the uniform on here before and someone told me to stop whinging and get down to asda.

Unfortunately schools have cottoned on to the fact that we could of sewn their school logo patch onto cheaper polo shirts so they now insist on embroidered logo's... people who had a go at me obviously don't have kids that go to the schools with embroidered logo's and could get away with the asda polo's.

anyhoo... just spent another fortune at John Lewis the only stockist, although no that is a lie, i could use the fairtrade organic uniform for double the price.

trouble is i am working class and this is a middle class school, so my own fault for wanting a decent education for my child, but then the local scum schools uniform is just as expensive.

Becles

The secondary school my sons go to is pretty reasonable for uniform. They sell a school tie and a badge to sew on a blazer, and all of the daily uniform can come from the high street, supermarket etc.

However they must have the school rugby shirt for PE, which costs around £20 depending on the size, and socks at around £6 a pair.

I can understand them needing kit if they were representing the school at a sports event, but I've no idea why they can't just wear a plain polo shirt and plain socks for regular PE lessons.

moggylover

Thanks for the replies folks:) I am still absolutely seething tbh, but I know that I will probably get absolutely no-where by having a go at the school and the LEA about these costs because they don't seem able to apply any common sense at all. Like I said, they obviously earn too much for their brain size because I consider those costs for sports wear to be totally out of order!

I'm lucky really, it's a nice area and neither of the schools here have major problems but apparently the other school has a rugby top made by Gilbert so it appears that these Companies are probably now targetting such institutions for their trade and making a tidy profit on their imported polyester dross from parents who have no choice in the matter:mad:

Since it is OUR money they are spending the least they could do is ask the parents if we are willing to agree to such expensive items before they insist on them or am I just expecting a little too much consideration and courtesy?;):D

moggylover

Mupette wrote: »

I am so glad DS is in his final year for uniform, if he does 6th form he can wear his own clothes.

i grumbled about the uniform on here before and someone told me to stop whinging and get down to asda.

Unfortunately schools have cottoned on to the fact that we could of sewn their school logo patch onto cheaper polo shirts so they now insist on embroidered logo's... people who had a go at me obviously don't have kids that go to the schools with embroidered logo's and could get away with the asda polo's.

anyhoo... just spent another fortune at John Lewis the only stockist, although no that is a lie, i could use the fairtrade organic uniform for double the price.

trouble is i am working class and this is a middle class school, so my own fault for wanting a decent education for my child, but then the local scum schools uniform is just as expensive.

You know Mupette, the truth is we are all "working class" but some just have more airs and graces than others;):D

There is nothing "special" about my sons school other than it is the Welsh Medium school for the area, but ALL of their uniform has to come from small local suppliers who I think really rip the backside out of the uniform issue and it makes me really cross because there are guidelines for the setting of school uniform and one of them is affordability. Personally, I don't call £27 for one jersey "affordable" but then I relate that to the average earnings in this area which are hardly above minimum wage and know that there are lots of people in this area for whom £27 is more than half a days earnings and think it is disgusting that a school would not be able to look at the matter in the same way:(

Mine have to still wear uniform for sixth form:eek: Just a different one to the rest of the school:(:(

Good on you for wanting a good education and start in life for your son, I hope he appreciates what a great mum you are:) I hope he does really well:)

slummymummyof3

I buy M&S jumpers etc and take them to a business that does embroidered logos. They charge £3 to embroider the logo on each piece of kit - substantially cheaper than using the only supplier that the school uses! I thought it was supposed to be bought in that uniforms were not supposed to be from only one supplier to give parents a choice and to prevent them being held to ransom, so to speak.......or was that a figment of my imagination????

Mupette

moggylover wrote: »

You know Mupette, the truth is we are all "working class" but some just have more airs and graces than others;):D

There is nothing "special" about my sons school other than it is the Welsh Medium school for the area, but ALL of their uniform has to come from small local suppliers who I think really rip the backside out of the uniform issue and it makes me really cross because there are guidelines for the setting of school uniform and one of them is affordability. Personally, I don't call £27 for one jersey "affordable" but then I relate that to the average earnings in this area which are hardly above minimum wage and know that there are lots of people in this area for whom £27 is more than half a days earnings and think it is disgusting that a school would not be able to look at the matter in the same way:(

Mine have to still wear uniform for sixth form:eek: Just a different one to the rest of the school:(:(

Good on you for wanting a good education and start in life for your son, I hope he appreciates what a great mum you are:) I hope he does really well

aww thanks for that, really nice thing to say :T

Been hard being a single mum but you do what you can.

He on the other hand is enjoying the final night of his French exchange trip (cost me a fortune) but to me it was an important part of his French learning, my parents moved to France a few years ago, his French is bad, and it will help in the future to travel around France. Again i got grief over this on here because i scrimped for that money and fell too ill to continue to work, when i already agreed for the exchange to happen. when i grumbled about the school not wanting to contribute to the French child's school dinner and bus fair as ds gets both free. I was very fortunate that when i returned the French child to the airport, the French exchange team donated the money to me, as they felt that i had tried my best given the circumstances.

But back to school uniform, the only thing i can get away cheaply is the trousers, so last year ds dragged me to primark and we got 2 pairs for him, asda/tesco do trousers but can never get 15 yr size.

only every few weeks we were dragging the sewing machine out because the seam down the leg kept coming away, and he wants me to get more there for this final year....:eek:

Do i bite the bullet and pay more at John Lewis for quality, or do i primark it and leave the sewing machine out for the next year.

9217niall

For four years of secondary school, we had to have branded jumpers (£18) and branded polo t-shirts (£12), PE Top and Shorts (£12) etc...
For my final year, the school became an all-through academy and so new uniform. They gave us all free uniform, which is good for me. However, £30 for a blazer and £5 for a clip on tie is pretty expensive. Plus parents now need shirts which went 'grey' a lot easier than the polos we had. Rant over. I feel sorry for the parents who have to fork out all this money. My brother will wear my blazer next year because I've kept it in good condition and we just don't have this sort of money.
At least for sixth form it's "smart business wear". A BN George suit from a car boot for £4...who needs to know! :P
My mini rant over.

Freddie_Snowbits

I remember my mum when I got too big in the fourth year senior school refused to buy the uniform any more, back of the assembly hall we had to stand most mornings and be singled out for the ritual trouser session.

Still how they wanted us when it came to playing football for the school!

Indie_Kid

It was like this when I was at secondarey school - the jumpe was something like £15, the tie was £6 and we had to have a rugby shirt at £16. Thankfully, things like trousers and shirts didn't have to be bought from a certain shop.