Back to School
The school summer holidays evoke childhood memories of long sunny days spent playing outside with friends at the park – or for those of us lucky enough to have grown up in Southend, down on the beach.
The weeks seemed endless and yet, almost as soon as school had broken up in July, the dreaded ‘Back to School’ posters would start appearing in shops. The same remains true today – reminding kids that the summer holidays have an expiry date and reminding parents of all the expensive purchases associated with the start of the new school year in September.
Around this time of year, here at South Essex Homes we often have conversations with worried tenants who are struggling with the pressures of paying for school uniforms and essentials whilst also paying their rent and other bills.
We therefore thought it would be useful to share some top tips with parents on how you can save money on Back to School necessities.
Supermarket savings
Every school uniform is different, so check what the uniform requirements are for your kids’ school. Some items may be bespoke; specific items of uniform which can only be purchased from the school directly or from uniform stores. But for the generic items of uniform (usually shirts, polo shirts, trousers etc) that you don’t necessarily need to buy from school uniform shops, it’s worth looking at the deals that supermarkets are offering
Do your homework!
All the major supermarket chains (including Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys, Lidl and Aldi) offer basic school uniform items at bargain prices so it’s well worth doing some research and shopping around for the best deals – as there are usually price wars over the summer holidays as they try and attract parents and outbid the competition.
Remember your Loyalty Points
If you’re a regular Tesco customer, for example, you may even be able to use Clubcard points towards the cost of school uniform to bring the price down even further.
Pre-loved
It’s often the case that kids hit growth spurts and can grow out of uniform items very suddenly and unfortunately, as Murphy’s Law would have it, this quite often happens soon after new items are purchased. On the plus side, this means that there are often good quality second hand uniform items available at a fraction of the price of buying new.
Get social
Check out your school’s social media pages – there may well be Facebook pages for example where parents advertise outgrown items available for sale or even for free.
Ask at Reception
Ask at your school reception for details of any programmes they may offer parents who are struggling with the cost of uniforms.
Swap Shop
Some schools offer uniform swap shops whereby you bring uniform items your child has outgrown and swap them for the next size up for a small donation, meaning that parents of smaller children can benefit from your donations too. If a swap shop doesn’t exist at the moment, why not try to set one up?
Sweet Charity
Visit charity shops near your child’s school and you may be able to grab yourself a second hand bargain.
Buy and sell
Check out the website www.grownoutofit.co.uk and enter the name of your child’s school. Not only might you grab yourself bargain pre-loved uniform products but there’s even the opportunity to sell the uniform items your child has grown out of so you may be able to get some money back.
Financial help may be available
You can now claim for a grant towards school uniform under Southend Borough Council’s Essential Living Fund (ELF) Scheme
To be eligible for this support the following conditions apply:
- you are a parent or guardian of a child who is the following school years reception Year 1 to Year 11
You must meet one of the below Exceptional Circumstances:
- you have been made homeless and supported by the Local Council and placed into temporary accommodation and had to change schools
- you have been placed into a refuge and had to change schools
- you have lost school uniform in a fire or flood
Evidence from the relevant services may be needed to support your application.
- And you must be in receipt of one of the following:
- Income Support
- Income-Related Employment and Support Allowance
- Income Based Job Seekers Allowance
- Child Tax Credit, but not Working Tax Credit, with an annual income of less than £16,190
- The Guaranteed Element of Pension Credit
- Universal Credit, with an annual income of £7400 or below
For further information, copy of the policy and access to the online claim form please visit www.southend.gov.uk/extra-financial-help/essential-living-fund
Need help or advice?
If you’re struggling financially, please get in touch with your Tenancy Services Officer via 0800 833160, or a member of the Income Management team on 0800 0234 057, who will be happy to offer advice and support.