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School uniform | School uniform deals

We've rounded up the latest school uniform deals

Updating your child's school uniform each year can be expensive. So we have rounded up the deals from the major supermarkets and department stores to help you save money where you can.

School uniform policies vary between schools, with some requiring pupils to wear specific items, such as blazers, from local school uniform suppliers. This can increase the cost of your child's school uniform, but there are often many items you can buy cheaper, such as standard white shirts and black trousers.

Here are the summer 2012 deals and prices from the main supermarkets and department stores:

Aldi

Deal: Full school uniform, which includes a sweater, a pack of two polo shirts and a pleated skirt or trousers for £4. In addition, if you find this deal cheaper anywhere else, Aldi guarantees it will drop its prices.

Prices start from £1.25 for a pack of two polo shirts, £1.50 for trousers and £1.25 for a sweatshirt.

All items go on sale on 2 August.

Asda

Prices start from £2.50 for a pack of two 100% cotton polo shirts, £3 for trousers, £2 for a sweatshirt and £10 for a blazer.

BHS

Prices start from £2 for a pack of two polo shirts, £4.50 for trousers, £5 for a jumper and £15 for a blazer.

Debenhams

Deal: Save 20% off the majority of school uniform items, and 70% off a select few until 27 August. 

Discounted prices start from £4 for a pack of two 100% cotton polo shirts, £7.20 for a pack of two trousers, £4 for a jumper and £8.50 for a blazer.

John Lewis

Deal: Both John Lewis and Marks & Spencer provide personalised school uniforms for a range or participating schools, potentially saving you money on purchasing specialist items from independent school uniform suppliers. 

John Lewis: prices start from £7 for a pack of two 100% cotton polo shirts, £8 for trousers, £6 for a sweatshirt and £15 for a blazer.

Marks & Spencer

Deal: Both John Lewis and Marks & Spencer provide personalised school uniforms for a range or participating schools, potentially saving you money on purchasing specialist items from independent school uniform suppliers.

Marks & Spencer: prices start from £3 for a pack of two 100% cotton polo shirts, £7 for a pack of two trousers, £3 for a jumper and £20 for a blazer.

Sainsbury's

Prices start from £3 for a pack of three 100% cotton polo shirts, £4 for a pack of two trousers and £3 for a pack of two sweatshirts.

Tesco

Deal: The Tesco Basics range includes a 75p polo shirt, £1.75 trousers and skirt, and a £2 sweatshirt. Often prices increase as you choose clothing for older children, but with this range the prices are fixed for all ages. 

Regular prices start from £2 for a pack of two 100% cotton polo shirts, £3 for trousers, £3 for a jumper and £10 for a blazer.

Also, it's worth looking at Tesco's Summer Clubcard Exchange system. This lets you exchange Tesco vouchers for double their worth, e.g. you can exchange a £5 voucher for £10 to spend in selected departments, including school uniforms. You can only exchange £5 or over, which you must do this before midnight on 29 August, and the exchanged tokens must be spent by midnight on 11 September.

Quality at low prices

To find out which shop sells the best value school uniform, in August 2012 Which? went to Asda, BHS, Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury’s and Tesco to buy five specific school uniform items at the cheapest price available on the day. We then took the items to a professional tailor who - without knowing where the items came from - rated each garments’ quality.

Weighing up the prices against our expert’s ratings, we found that Asda was best for value – its uniform was the second cheapest (after Sainsbury’s) and was rated joint second with Tesco for quality. Our expert tailor said BHS was the best for quality, but this uniform set was the most expensive. Marks & Spencer’s five ‘Outstanding Value’ items were rated lowest in the tailor’s assessment.

Help with uniform costs

Although setting school uniform policy is at the discretion of each individual school, the government and The Department of Education has created guidelines that ensure schools create a fair policy that is considerate of pupils needs, including financial concerns.

For parents struggling with the costs of school uniforms there is help available. If you are on benefits or a low income you might be entitled to clothing grants or vouchers from your local authority. Visit the Directgov website and enter your postcode to find details on how your local authority can help.

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