Back-to-school essentials: 21 tips, tricks and kit – from parents and kids

Parents are stocking up on uniforms, booking in shoe fittings and gearing up for the return to school – or, in Scotland, already battling the school run.

Whether your child is just starting reception or well into secondary school, it’s a big adjustment after six weeks off. Arming them with tools to cope with the change, and the right kit, can ease this period for everyone.

My eldest daughter is going into year two and after over-buying everything on the school’s list when she started in reception, I now buy just a few essentials every year. And I make sure I’m buying products that last.

Here are the best tips, tricks and buys that will last beyond half term from parents (and children) to mark the return to the classroom.

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Back-to-school essentials

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Name everything

Buy a batch of sticky labels with their names on it – I get my kids to put them in their uniforms and kit themselves. Try to keep the first few weekends of the new school year free, because however well adjusted and excited kids are about the new year, the change is always a big deal. They often come out of school with little to say and suddenly open up at bedtime or on a car journey, so being around without too much going on in those first few weeks can really help. Steph Douglas, Kingston

Name stickers and stamps are a firm favourite, as they’re an easy way to keep track of everything from pencil cases to T-shirts. But lots of people I know just use a Sharpie to write their child’s name on everything. Rebecca Goodman

Name stickers

From £9.99 at Labels 4 School £12.95 for 60 at Amazon

Sharpies, pack of five

£3 at John Lewis £3.99 at Ryman

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Erasable pens

Make sure you’ve got a good supply of Legami pens and don’t forget they have a rubber on the end to erase mistakes. And if you stick your paper in the freezer for five minutes, the writing will come back – great for sending secret messages. Bridget Boyle, 7, London

Legami erasable pens

From £1.95 each at Cass Art £12.35 for seven at Amazon

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De-stress the night before

The night before, have a really nice bubble bath or an extra-long shower so you’re really relaxed and refreshed and ready for the next day. Ena Murphy, 12, Hampshire

Sleepy bubble bar

£4.50 at Lush

Satsuma shower gel, 250ml

£3.50 at the Body Shop

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Get hard-wearing school shoes

Practice walking in new school shoes before the start of term to avoid pinching or rubbing, and go to a shop for a fitting if possible. We find shoes from Start-Rite, ToeZone and Clarks are especially hard-wearing for the entire school term. Get your children involved with choosing the shoes too, to avoid any refusals when they go back to school. RG

Younger children:

Double strap rip-tape shoes

From £30 at John Lewis

Leather strap shoes

£48 at Start-Rite

Older kids:

Lace-up shoes

£42 at Clarks

Leather rip-tape shoes

£60 at Start-Rite

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Thermos flasks

We used Thermos food flasks throughout infant and most of junior school for our twins. You can heat up things like pasta or dumplings in the morning and they’ll still be warm by lunch. Claire Walker, Buckinghamshire

Thermos Funtainer food flask, 290ml

£18.59 at Mountain Warehouse £12.74 at Amazon

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Pack the night before (and take a water bottle)

Pack your lunch and bag the night before school, so you’re not in a hurry in the morning. Also fill up a water bottle so it’s all ready for you. I like the Owala bottles because they’re big and keep my water cold throughout the day. Holly Smith, 16, Norfolk

The Filter’s top pick: Owala FreeSip water bottle, 710ml

£31.99 at Owala £27.99 at Amazon

Ion8 water bottles are great. They don’t leak as they have a locking mechanism, so they’re safe when thrown into bags too. Andy Coley, London

The Filter’s top budget pick: Ion8 water bottle, 400ml

£12.99 at Decathlon £13 at Argos

For more, read our guide to the best water bottles

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Backpack (with sections)

Choose a rucksack with a separate netting section for primary school, so you can put a water bottle in here and away from everything in the bag in case of leaks. When you get to secondary school, the bottle will need to go into your bag (or it might get pinched), so choosing one that doesn’t leak is even more important. Isabel Mason, 16, North Somerset

Hype backpack

£29.99 at Ryman

Superdry Montana backpack

£39.99 at John Lewis £39.99 at Superdry

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Wellies and waterproofs

My daughters go to a forest school so they need a set of wellies and waterproofs for the outdoor sessions, in any weather. Full-on puddle suits are best for younger children, while waterproof trousers with braces seem to keep the most water out for older ones. We also like wellies with a bit of grip and an inner lining, which are more comfortable and warmer when going out in deepest darkest winter. RG

Puddlestomper wellies

£30 at Muddy Puddles

Waterproof puddle suit

£36 at Muddy Puddles

Regatta waterproof puddle suit

£14.99 at Decathlon

Waterproof jacket and trousers set

£34.99 at Mountain Warehouse

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Set up a ‘spares’ box

Stock up on school items you’re likely to need to buy again – such as scientific calculators, stationery and the inevitable World Book Day costumes – when they’re in the sales. Most schools also have a pre-loved uniform collection, often with brand new items that have never been worn, and there are local Facebook and WhatsApp groups for these too. Sarah Poulter, Leeds

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Stationery essentials

Younger children will be supplied with most of the stationery they need, especially in the first few years of primary school. For older children, the Helix Oxford back-to-school kit has everything you need, including an Oxford scientific calculator and a clear pencil case that might be needed for exams. RG

Helix Oxford complete stationery set

£22.74 at Amazon

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Open up the conversation

It can be hard to get children of any age to talk about things that have happened at school, even if it’s something mundane like what they had for lunch or who they sat next to. I always go first and share something about my day – who I’ve seen, something funny that happened or what my favourite thing of the day was. This works for us with opening up the conversation even in the post-school tiredness phase. Emily Veall, Hampshire

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Lunch box

I’ve had a green Yumbox lunch box for six years. They’re very convenient and you can fit a lot of different things in them to eat during snack and lunchtime. There’s lots of compartments, so you can have things like yoghurt in one and wraps in another and the food always stays put. Ivor White, 9, Jersey

Yumbox lunch carrier

£31.95 at The Range

Munchkin bento box

£22.99 at John Lewis £23.99 at Munchkin

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WhatsApp groups and stain bars

Watch out for the WhatsApp groups: they can be very handy for dates and events but also distracting and full of some interesting views and opinions. I’d also recommend getting a Vanish stain bar to win the battle between white tops and school dinners. It also works well on sun-cream stains during the summer. Charlene Young, Cheshire

Vanish stain remover bars

£7.19 for a pack of three at B&Q £8.90 for a pack of six at Amazon

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Save some annual leave

It’s a good idea to keep some annual leave days spare for the days off you’ll probably need to take for the constant colds, coughs and school bugs that seem to sweep through classrooms like wildfire. RG

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Get back into a sleep routine

Start getting back into your usual sleeping schedule before you go back to school so you don’t get too tired and it doesn’t feel too bad getting up for school in the mornings. Listening to an audiobook on my Alexa is a good way to wind down before sleep. Rowan Boyle, 10, London

Echo Dot kids smart speaker

£39.99 at John Lewis £39.99 at Amazon

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Load up food cards

Always check there’s enough money on your school food card if you have hot dinners, and make a budget for it to last the week. Rulers get snapped a lot so always have spares, and check your bag or pockets each week to make sure you’ve got everything you need – including a pen, so you don’t get detention. Sam Lawson, 13, Cambridgeshire

Helix clear folding ruler

£2 at Waitrose £3.90 at Amazon

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Pack a raincoat

Always make sure there’s a packable waterproof coat in their bags, no matter the weather, just in case. Anthony Forchione, Buckinghamshire

Waterproof packaway jacket

£15 at Regatta £27.99 at Decathlon

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Power hearts

Some children will struggle with leaving you, especially when they’re younger. I’ve used several tools to help with drop-offs, including drawing a little heart on your and your child’s wrist, just before you say goodbye to them, to give you both a little boost throughout the day and to serve as a reminder that you’ll soon be reunited. RG

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Get good-quality tights

To get ahead for secondary school, I started buying two pairs of Snag tights a month for my daughter when she was in year six. They’re the best and last ages, so now she’s in year eight she has loads and I won’t need to buy any for a while. Sarah Lewis, Brighton

£8.49 a pair at Snag

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Pencil cases

Whatever colour, design or style your child is into, there’s a pencil case for them. Smiggle’s Wonder World cases have in-built calculators and secret storage compartments too. For older children, just check if the school has any specific requirements on the colour or material first (such as cases needing to be clear). RG

Smiggle pop-out pencil case

£15 at Next From £7.90 at Amazon

Clear pencil case

£1.49 at Ryman

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Keyrings and charms for your bag

If everyone has the same bags, a keyring with your name or initial on or something bright and fluffy can help. I can spot my red book bag quickly as I’ve got an ‘F’ charm and a Lego keyring on it. Florence Goodman, 6, Cambridgeshire.

Inital keyring

£8 at Monsoon

Resin keyring

£12 at Oliver Bonas

Lego-style letter keyring

£3.99 at Not On The High Street

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What not to bother with …

There’s a lot of pressure on parents to buy everything new at the start of term, but if your child hasn’t grown much since the summer, last term’s uniform will almost definitely still fit; summer clothes are often worn for the first few weeks at least.

Everything on the list

Most schools send out a list of all the required uniform and equipment your child will need, but it’s not always necessary to buy everything. Apart from the basic clothes, if you wait until your child is at school you can then see what they actually need. In my daughter’s first year of school, for example, I bought some black PE trainers that weren’t used until about March – by then, she had grown out of them. I also got a backpack for her, but in the first year she only needed the school’s book bag. RG

Cheap water bottles

I’ve had to throw out more water bottles than I care to think about and it’s sickening thinking about the money I’ve spent on them – and the waste generated (although many of ours have been repurposed for toys and crafts). I’ve also had to deal with lots of bottle leaks from cheap plastic bottles – and bags full of water and sodden books and paper. RG

Uniform with logos

I always buy a few uniform sets with the school logo on (handy for school photo days) but you probably don’t need every item to have one – just check your school’s requirements. Uniform without a logo is significantly cheaper and there are often discounts running. RG