Recommendations for School Shoes and Plimsoles

SpikyHedgehog

Another thought about Clarks shoes from Clarks (dunno how Brantano would view this...) is that they are designed to be outgrown not outworn. Now, that may have been the case when I was at school, but DS2's do not last a year (am lucky I know with boys with slow growing feet!) before beginning to come apart. So I take him and the shoes & reciept back into Clarks, show them the wear & tear, they agree to change them but have to measure him first... So give us the next half size up! My friend got her son's school shoes & trainers changed but at the time, DS2's trainers looked ok.

As I said, dunno if Brantano would do this but as Ds2 has super wide feet, they don't stock his width fitting in our Brantano anyway though I do get DS1's trainers from there as his feet are now so big I can only get Clarks boys shoes for him, not the trainers. And am not prepared to pay for Clarks mens trainers while his feet are still growing!

JC9297

Just make sure you do not buy shoes with laces until he/she can tie them properly as teachers/T.A.s do not appreciate having to tie them. Many parents make sure their child has velcro shoes but send in trainers with laces for P.E.

Regarding whether they wear plimsolls, usually they all start with plimsolls if that is what is on the uniform list, but gradually they start changing to trainers as they get older.

pinkmum2010

m&s do some very cute mary jane plimsols which my kids wear to school at the mo as they've just outgrown their clarks shoes and i didn't want to buy new ones with only a couple of weeks of term left and they are perfect for my girls as they look like a shoe but are more like trainer and are around £4

iwill

We get my dd shoes from Clarks and they do seem to last pretty good as we got her hush puppies last year (same price as clarks) and they wore out in less than half the time so never again. Daps we also get from clarks and as they don't get alot of wear we sell them on to others as they are the same sizing as their doodles.
We wait till the week before they go back to get them.

squibbs25

Hi Bailey, where abouts in East Sussex are you?

There is a Clarks Outlet in Ashford in the McArthur Glen Designer Centre, Its easy to get to by train - Brighton to Ashford - (goes through Eastbourne, Hastings, Rye) obviously depending on where abouts you are though!
Alot of my friends go there to get there kids school shoes.
It can make a fun day out as there is a play park there, and during the school holidays lots of kids activites, my children went in the hamster balls (on water) there last summer.
(forgot to say if you do go try and get there for when they open as it gets really busy in the school hols)

There used to be a Jones the Bootmaker Factory outlet somewhere in Easbourne but i can't seem to find any details on the net anymore so not sure what happened to that.

onlyroz

I've always gone to Clarks for school shoes. My boy is now 6 and I've found that a pair of shoes bought at the end of August will still fit him by the following July. Trainers I'm not so fussy about - I've found the out-door shops often have good hardwearing ones that aren't too expensive.

touch*my*food*feel*myfork

Im also one for Clarks, my boy is 10 and this year is the first that his clarks shoes have not lasted the whole year.
I had to buy another pair at Easter and decided to buy a cheaper pair all be it still £28 from Barretts (I had vouchers from a competition - lol!), but they were scuffed to bits within the first week and are currently limping to the the end of term!

As for plimsoles, just a cheap pair as they sit in the PE bag in the clockroom more than on the feet. I find that they come up quite big and currently my son wears a size smaller than he actually is with plenty of space in them still.

PS - I have already got his shoes for Sept - Clarks brought from John Lewis about a month ago at half price - I do try and buy in the sales or go to an outlet at Swindon/Clarks Village on way back from hols.

ladybez

I have found it much harder to buy shoes for DS's. Until this year I have ususally bought form M&S of Clarks outlet but they often only last a term. Last Sept. OH bought them Timberlands, again from an outlet village so less then half price, and for the first time they have lasted up to now. Will def. try to get the same for next year!

theladsmum

Our school requires outdoor shoes to be changed to either plimsoles or an "indoor" shoe, to keep the school a bit cleaner, so check why they are asking for them. Dont assume they will hardly be worn. You can get them with velcro fastenings as well as the slip on ones - my two have always had slim feet so the velcro ones are better. And buy the cheapest you can get - absolutely no difference!! It's only rubber and canvas.

As for what they are called - it's sand shoes round here!!!

shy-but-need-help

pigpen wrote: »

I have one very similar and he has only twice gone through trousers and never wrecked a pair of shoes!

He has severe dyspraxia, severe hypermobility and totally flat footed and 'heel heavy' (and other issues too.. why can they not just have 1??).. which work against each other to create the most accident prone child in the world!

PP where are you buying your ds's school trousers from? So far DS1 has managed to put holes in M&S, Tesco and Asda ones :cool: He does charge around at full tilt though (head first into doorposts, the other week it was a shiner from running into guttering- he no sense of where he is in relation to things) so when he falls- which is often- he meets the ground with a tremendous force. If there are sturdier trousers out there they'd be most welcome here! (this time of year dd2 looks prestine still, ds1 looks like he escaped the set of Oliver!):rotfl:

We always end up with practically perfect right show, left shoe with hardly any heel left on it and scrubbed out toe. He's just hit a size 4 and I'm dreading him reaching the end of the velcro sizes as I have more chance of him setting on fire than learning to tie laces (his fine motor is very delayed, alot moreso than his gross motor) The poor child still gets stuck in his t-shirts- to the point of anxiety attacks, I really feel for his teacher!- so the thought of laces is worrying.