The new school term can be an expensive month for many parents with the list of ‘back to school’ accessories ever growing.
Parenting on Female First
Buying the new school uniform for the year, new shoes to replace the downtrodden pair, the must-have lunch box and not forgetting all the stationary you have to provide for- it certainly doesn’t come cheap!
New research by money saving website in the UK has revealed that the average parent with children of secondary school age will spend up to £520.50 on products to send their children back with.
Parents of children at primary schools will also make a dent in their purses, spending £137.00 on items purchased.
Parents revealed that the biggest average expense is the school uniform, followed by footwear and stationary.
Not only will parents be breaking the bank for school items but www.VoucherCodesPro.co.uk found that 36% of the parents with children of secondary school aged revealed that they would be buying their children some kind of technological device (or that they had already) to assist with their school work, such as a laptop or tablet. The average parent admitted to spending an average of £278.00 on technology equipment.
The results show that it costs £105.00 more, on average, for parents to send their kids back to secondary school that it does when they are at primary school.
A worrying 33% of parents admitted that they would accumulate debt from the costs associated with sending their child back to school. 12% admitted that they would be sending their child to school in uniform that they had outgrown slightly, to avoid buying new clothing.
Top 5 most expensive secondary school items:
1. Uniform (clothing only) – £116.00
2. Footwear – £48.00
3. Stationary – £37.00
4. School bag – £25.00
5. Other - £16.50
Top 5 most expensive items for primary school items:
1. Uniform (clothing only) – £58.00
2. Footwear – £29.00
3. Stationery – £23.00
4. School bag – £12.50
5. Lunch box - £8.00
George Charles, spokesperson for VoucherCodesPro.co.uk, said the following:
“Back to school costs such as these are the last thing a parent needs after what was no doubt a very expensive summer holiday break trying to keep the kids entertained. It’s important for parents to shop around and try to get deals at this time of year, perhaps by visiting cheaper high street stores for uniform, stationery and accessories instead of splashing out with more expensive retailers.
“If your child is pestering you for a new laptop for the homework they will inevitably have to do, try to remember that they probably want it more for Facebook and surfing the web than they do for their research and projects. Besides, the school library will have plenty of facilities like this they can use!”
Tagged in Parents School Back To School