Back to School with Debenhams School Uniform

The small boy, who these days is not so small, starts Year 2 in just under a fortnight (where has the time gone etc etc). He needs new school uniform, but the thought of spending hours of our precious summer together trawling through various shops buying various bits of uniform and kit fills me with horror. Better to buy it all, or almost all in the same place at the same time. Last week we popped to Debenhams and did just that.

If I was fancy I’d talk about our Debenhams School Uniform “haul”, but I’m old-fashioned for that. Instead we just went shopping and bought a big bag of school uniform. Hopefully enough to see him through until his next growth spurt. Debenhams School Uniforms are currently 20% off in store and online, something we took full advantage of.

This will be his fourth “school year” (School Nursery, Reception, Year 1 etc) so this is not our first time at the school uniform rodeo. We know what he likes and what he doesn’t like.

We bought a new warm padded school coat (£18), 6 pristine white polo shirts (£5.60 for a pack of two), 2 pairs of slim fit trousers (£8.80), 2 pairs of flat fronted trousers (£9) and 10 new pairs of grey socks (£4 per pack of 5 pairs). All we need are a couple of jumpers with the school logo on and we are ready for the start of the year. Our shopping trip cost us just under £63, that’s including the 20% off!

I was really pleased to find some nice slim fit trousers. I always think the flat fronted ones make him look like a junior accountant, so we bought some slim fit to try out. Like most children, he is very hard on the knees of his trousers. If he’s not falling over and grazing his knees, he’s crawling along being a ninja superhero or something.

Back to School with Debenhams School Uniform

He’s six and whilst he’s grasped the rudimentaries of getting himself dressed. If he’s rushing he can still get frustrated with fiddly buttons on trousers, especially if he’s getting himself changed for PE or nipping to the loo. We like to adjust the waistband on his trousers so they’re loose enough to just pull them up in a rush if he needs to, but not loose enough to fall down, obviously. Both the flat front and slim fit styles we chose have adjustable waistbands. Phew.

He is also very hard on the white polo shirts he has to wear for school. I’m enjoying them now in their pristine white state before term starts. His polo shirts get washed to death. We like to buy enough so he has a clean one each day and a couple of spares waiting to be brought into circulation once he starts destroying them.

We have tended to buy cheap supermarket polo shirts which often shrink in the wash a bit. I’m hopeful these will stand up to regular washing a bit better than their supermarket counterparts. They do feel like they’re a cut above in terms of quality and doesn’t he look smart (and clean)!

Back to School with Debenhams School Uniform

As for his new coat, it’s light to carry and nicely padded for the winter months. With an easy zip up the front and zipped pockets so his treasures won’t fall out. He’s thrilled with it and at £18 we have no complaints either.

We have high hopes that our “haul” of Debenhams school uniform will last the year; or until he grows out of it. I am impressed with the price and quality. Everything seems well designed with sturdy stitching and made from good quality material. Even the socks are thicker, stretchier and more comfortable than the cheap supermarket ones I’ve made him wear.

If I have one regret, it’s not buying more polo shirts, another couple of packets couldn’t hurt, could it?

Visit their website to have a look at their range.

Back to School with Debenhams School Uniform

Note: This post is in collaboration with Debenhams as part of their Back to School Campaign. All images and opinions are our own.

Back to School: Tough school shoes from Jake Shoes

Year One has been HARD on my son’s school shoes. I have no idea what he does during his school day, but he’s worn through the top of every single pair of shoes he’s had this year. Admittedly they’ve all been cheap supermarket shoes made of pretend leather, maybe that was part of the problem. Some pairs barely lasted a month, I think I’ve been making a false economy on the school shoes front. This year I’m trying a different tactic, I’m going to see if a pair of virtually indestructible Kickers from Jake Shoes will survive the year, or at least a term.

Back to School: Tough school shoes from Jake Shoes

We chose the “Kick lo velcro kids” from Jake Shoes. They are a mini version of a of the classic Kick Lo shoes. The Kick lo velcro kids have velcro straps so he can get them on and off easily. They are made from really good quality black leather and have a thick, grippy sole. The leather is really thick hard leather so they will need to be broken in over the summer. He will wear them for a couple of hours here and there and they should be just right by the time he starts back at school in September.

Back to School: Tough school shoes from Jake Shoes

I think they look really smart. He is really pleased with them and was desperate to get them on and run about in them. With the shoes being made from real leather we will need to give them a polish every so often to keep them looking good, especially with his habit of scuffing the tops of his shoes.

What I like about them is one shoe has a green label and the other a red label on the shoe, which will help him to remember which shoe goes on which foot. Something he does still struggle with when he’s not concentrating on what he’s doing.

Back to School: Tough school shoes from Jake Shoes

Jake Shoes have two high street stores, one in the Manchester Arndale Centre and one in Stockport Town Centre. Both of them are local to me, but for convenience I ordered online. It’s good to know that they do have high street stores so close to me, sometimes it’s good to be able to get his feet measured and have him try on a few pairs before we choose a favourite.

The Jake Shoes website is really easy to use, the shoes were delivered quickly and in perfect condition. We chose the Kick lo velcro kids shoes in size 13.5 kids and they cost £53. The price varies depending on the size, starting from £45.

Jake Shoes are specialists in kids shoes. They stock a large range of school shoes, including Kickers, Geox and Timberland, as well as other popular kids shoes like Converse, Vans and Lelli Kelly. Will these Kickers survive the rigours of life on the feet of a six year old? I have high hopes that they will!

See the full range of Jake Shoes school shoes here.

Back to School: Tough school shoes from Jake Shoes

Note: We received these shoes for review purposes. All images and opinions are our own.

Outdoors: Putting Trespass walking boots to the test

We are a family who walks a lot. We love the countryside and although we live in Manchester we have a local nature reserve on our doorstep. Most weekends we go for a walk by the river, or through the woods; and we often take trips further afield. My husband loves to go walking in the Lake District, Derbyshire and Devon whenever he can.

We all own good stout walking boots for when we go out for an amble. When I broke my ankle when I was hill walking in 1994, the A&E Doctor told me if I’d not been wearing my good boots I would have shattered my ankle completely. His words have stayed with me and I always wear them when I’m walking.