Your Handy Money-Saving Checklist

The time has almost come to pack your little ones off to school again, which means the dreaded back to school shop is just around the corner. As well as being a bit of a stressful day – no one wants to argue with a 10-year-old about the type of backpack you’re buying while in the middle of a shop – it can also be incredibly pricey.

While there are some expenses that are unavoidable – after all, you can’t send your child to school in trousers that are already three inches short – other costs can be reduced. This may not help with your stress levels, but it will certainly pay off when it comes to caring for your bank account.

To help you get ready to send your children off to school without needing to shell out a fortune, here’s our handy checklist:

Before you head out to buy notebooks, protractors and a new scientific calculator, do a thorough sweep of your child’s room and the rest of your house to see if you can locate any old equipment.

They may like the idea of getting all new things, but if they already have a stash of 50 ballpoint pens, they don’t really need any more. This will also allow you to check the state of their school bag and other equipment to see if it will last another year.

Get your kids to pop on their uniform and PE kits so you can see whether they still fit, can last a bit longer and are still in good condition. School uniforms can be expensive so you don’t want to have to buy a new one if the one they have is still okay.

If your kids do need new uniforms, it is a good idea to buy trousers, skirts and school jumpers in a size or two larger to allow room for them to grow. This doesn’t mean you need to send them to school in a uniform that is obviously too big, instead, try making small alterations to make it fit them now but can be changed later on.

Hemming trousers and skirts can hide the fact they are too long and can easily be undone when they need them to be a bit bigger. Similarly, belts will disguise waists that are slightly too big, while sleeves can be rolled up a bit on jumpers.

Yes, your child may well want the pack of fun-shaped rubbers but if they aren’t on the list, you need to put your foot down. Write down exactly what they need so you know what you have to buy and stick to it.

Adding extra things to the basket will only make the costs skyrocket and mean they end up with more stuff to carry around with them, lose or break. It may be a good idea to hit the shops on your own so you can avoid tears and tantrums.

It may be ‘cool’ to have school equipment with labels on, but this doesn’t make it better, ensure it’ll last longer and it definitely doesn’t mean it will be cheaper. Having to buy a school jumper or blazer with the logo on it can be expensive enough without also kitting your kids out in designer labels.

Instead, opt for cheaper options that are practical and sturdy. Let’s face it, that pair of expensive school shoes that every other kid has so yours desperately needs is going to get scuffed up just the same, if not quicker, so won’t be a good investment.

There are likely to be a lot of offers and discounts available on back to school stuff over the next couple of weeks, so keep an eye out and find the best deal to help keep your prices low. Check online to see what you can find for a bargain price – which also means not having to drag your children to shops – and compare in-store prices as you shop.

While these tips may not mean less stress, they will certainly result in less expenses.