The end of term is near with the six weeks summer holidays on the horizon, but already many parents are looking to buy school uniforms ready for the new academic year in September. And a number of retailers have announced their cut-price school uniform deals for those looking to snap up shirts, skirts and trousers early.
Some supermarkets are offering bundle deals, with others knocking a percentage off the total cost, and at some retailers, shoppers can get cashback on their uniform purchases when they shop in a certain way.
Aldi and Marks and Spencer have both announced deals going on sale from early July, with prices starting from as little as £1.50 for a school jumper.
With supermarkets keeping their prices low too there should be plenty of bargains to be bagged before September comes, as many of them are cutting prices further in the next few weeks to encourage shoppers to buy early, with school shirts, skirts, jumpers, trousers and blouses all reduced.
Here's everything we know about all the major players' 2022 offerings and sales, deals and discounts so far.
Aldi school uniforms
Aldi's school uniform tends to be one of the lowest priced of the major retailers and 2022 is no different. Aldi's school event which covers all the essentials from uniforms to bags, lunchboxes and stationery will be available from early July.
We already know of some great Aldi SpecialBuys set to be unveiled, with sweatshirts in a range of colours from £1.50 each, packs of girls and boys polo shirts from £1.75 for two and trousers and skirts from £1.75.
Aldi uses water-repellent finishes on its school skirts, trousers and dresses to help stop the worst of the staining. A lot of their range is also tumble dryer safe and non-iron, which will make all parents rejoice on a Sunday night.
What do parents say? While the reviews aren't in yet for this year, parents have previously praised the boys' adjustable waist school trousers as being particularly excellent, washing well and being hard wearing. One added: "These are great school trousers. Bought them a few years ago thinking they wouldn’t last as the price was so cheap and they’ve lasted so long."
How to buy: School uniform will be available in stores from Thursday, July 7 as part of their Back to School event. But to avoid disappointment or a lack of size availability you can pre-order online from the Sunday before, July 3.
Guarantee: Most of the most popular products in Aldi's school uniform line come with a whopping 150-day money back guarantee. See the full list of items covered in the T&Cs here. Keep your receipt though, you'll need it whether you're requesting a full refund (no exchanges are available) in store or online to prove you're within the 150 days.
Sale: With Aldi's prices already low, there are unlikely to be any more large-scale discounts. That said, when you can get a £5 school uniform bundle including a jumper, two polo shirts and either trousers or a pleated skirt it seems harsh to quibble. The deal goes live at 8am on Sunday, July 3 here.
Sainsbury's school uniforms
Sainsbury's school uniform range is arriving in shops now. Polo shirts start at £3 for a pair, jumpers from £4 for a 2 pack, trousers from £7 a pair while a 2 pack of dresses is from £8. If two shirts is too many but five feels excessive, Sainsburys is one of the retailers offer packs of three shirts. Prices start from £4, with the girls' fit coming with a lovely scalloped collar detail.
Tu also has a sensory-friendly Dressing With Ease range, where touch and close fasteners replace buttons and the softest material possible is used to maximise comfort and encourage independent dressing in littlies.
What do parents say? Sainsbury's girls jersey school trousers are one of the most well-reviewed items in the range, although if usable pockets are a deal-breaker you might want to look elsewhere. However, over 1,000 happy parents have posted their feedback. One said: "Brilliant trousers for school. Easy pull on with stretch make them comfy. Soft and warm. They wash well and can be tumble dried too if needed."
How to buy: Sainsbury's full school uniform range is available to buy online now here as well as in-store, although depending on the size of the store you may not get all styles of each individual item so it's worth planning a visit to a larger one.
Guarantee: Sainsbury is another of the big players offering a 150-day money back guarantee so long as you can prove date of purchase. Read full T&Cs here.
Sale: Sainsbury has just announced 20% off its school clothing until July 9. If you miss this or, as sometimes happens, popular sizes in the range have sold out, it's still worth keeping an eye out as the firm does regular discounts on clothes throughout the year. This may not be your only deal to bag a bargain.
Marks and Spencer school uniforms
M&S school uniform is beloved by many parents and has one of the widest ranges available including easy on styles, softer more sensory-friendly options, long and standard lengths, a range of fits from skinny to more relaxed fit and one of the widest ranges of different gingham colours and styles if you're looking to buy summer uniform alongside winter clothes in one go.
While, as you might expect, M&S clothes come out considerably more expensive than the supermarket options, often the price differences seem bigger because where most packs of shirts in supermarkets come in twos or threes M&S does packs of five. So suddenly £14 for school shirts doesn't seem quite so bad when you work out it's £2.80 per shirt - although of course this is still almost double an Aldi option.
What do parents say? The positive of having so many different types of fit is that, there's something for children of all shapes and sizes. One of the most popular and best reviewed items M&S sells are their skinny fit boys' trousers. One parent said: "These fit very well indeed. The adjustable waist is fantastic as my son is skinny. The trousers wash very well and I don’t normally need to iron them which is even better."
How to buy: School uniform is already in M&S stores for this autumn and is all available online here. Their Click and Collect offering is free on all orders while home delivery is free for orders over £50.
Guarantee: Marks and Spencer does a 35 money back guarantee on unworn items ideal for trying things on at home if your child isn't comfortable in an in-store changing room. But where other retailers have specific guarantees for school clothes, M&S doesn't - instead all purchases are subject to their usual refunds and returns T&Cs.
Sale: If you're a Sparks card holder it's worth keeping an eye out to see if you get any school uniform related personalised offers. But otherwise, if M&S uniform is top of your back to school shopping list, put a note in your diary for July 5. M&S will be doing 20% off all uniform from then until July 25 both in store and online.
Asda school uniforms
We've been genuinely impressed by the wide selection of uniform styles offered by George at Asda this year. They have almost as many different fits as M&S for considerably less expensive prices, with long length, plus fit and slim options all available as well as lovely soft jersey girls' playsuit. The Easy On Easy Wear school uniform is particularly great for children with specific or sensory-sensitive needs, encouraging independent dressing and comfort with soft materials and threads, elasticated waistbands an non-bulky seams as standard.
We're back in the land of doubles though, with prices starting from £6 for a two pack of shirts or trousers, £9 for two pinafore dresses, £4 for two sweatshirts or £3 for two shirts. There are some single skirts and trousers available, although they tend to be at a slightly higher price point.
What do parents say? The girls' drop waist pleated pinafore dress is one of the most popular items in the range, with hundreds of positive reviews. One shopper said: "Great quality pinafores at a bargain price for my little girl starting school. They are soft and easy for her to dress herself."
How to buy: Asda school uniform is available in store and online with a free Click and Collect service available.
Guarantee: Asda's school uniform comes with a 150-day guarantee which will see you through the first term and beyond. Full details on the terms and conditions are here.
Sale: Asda has not announced any promotions for discounts on school uniform at the time of writing, but it is possible to get 11% cashback on any purchase you make via TopCashback which would help offset the costs slightly. Simply sign up here and then click the link through to the Asda website and you will get your 11% cashback credited to your account.
Tesco school uniforms
Tesco does a full range of uniform options, including a range of styles of trousers and tops in five different colour options as well as the usual polo and long and short sleeve shirts. Tesco is the land of the multipack which has its pros and cons depending on exactly how much uniform you need to buy in one go.
For tops, prices start at £6 for a two pack of V-neck jumpers, £8 for a two pack of cardigans and £4 for a two pack of crew neck sweatshirts. Meanwhile, two long sleeve shirts start at £3.50, two skirts from £6 and two pinafores from £10.
Trousers come with adjustable waists which make them ideal for combating expensive growth spurts, while Teflon stain repellent finishes making washing younger children's uniforms less soul destroying once paints and white board pens have been busted out in the classroom.
What do parents say? As someone whose eight-year-old has lived in F&F grey jersey school trousers for the last couple of years, whatever else I buy or try from the other ranges we'll definitely be adding a couple of these to our weekly shop basket. They're soft and they wash well. My daughter loves the pockets for her precious things and the star detail on the zip while I love the fact she's been wearing the same two pairs of trousers since September and they're still going strong three weeks before the end of term.
How to buy: Since Tesco stopped selling its clothes online, buying school uniform there has become slightly more hassle. Often what you can find is very much subject to availability with popular sizes and styles selling out quickly. That said, if you shop there regularly anyway and can just take a look every visit you should be able to find what you need, plus you can get Clubcard points on it.
Guarantee: Tesco's F&F range of school uniforms come with a 100-day money back guarantee with the firm saying 'if it wears out quicker than you expected, we'll exchange it.' Keep your receipt though, you'll need it to prove you're within the 100 days for any exchange or refund.
Sale: Tesco has not yet released details of any sale on their school uniform yet for 2022. We would suggest keeping an eye out in store though for any Clubcard discounts in the run up to the start of the new term. Alternatively, a limited part of the school uniform range is available to buy through the Tesco Groceries platform, making it possible to get £10 off a £35 purchase via TopCashback. Simply sign up here and then click the link through to the Asda website.
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