School shoe shopping has always been an expensive affair and that was before the cost of living crisis.
With families struggling to make ends meet amid rising bills, it's more important than ever to try to keep costs down. Many branded shoes cost from at least £30 a pair, so for parents with more than one child to buy for - as well as all the other uniform they need - it soon mounts up.
That's why one podiatrist has been offering her advice. She tells how families can spend less, but still get a decent pair of shoes.
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In a Facebook post on her Axis Podiatry page, Dr Lindsay Hill has shared a number of tips for what parents can do when they're heading to a supermarket or other store to pick out shoes for their kids.
The advice includes shopping for shoes in the afternoon as feet can swell, taking their school socks along for the fitting and checking the child can balance in the footwear. The podiatrist - who insists shoes are 'the most important part of your child's uniform - has also shared some examples of good and bad shoe styles for protecting kids' feet.
And she says you shouldn't need to spend much more than £10 for a decent pair that will last, providing 'you know what you are looking for'.
She said: "Mums and dads often think they will get longer out of expensive shoes, but this is not necessarily the case in my experience. I think your child is more likely to grow out of their shoes before they wear out."
She says shoes such as these for girls - one costing around £10, the other £30+ - are a perfect example.
"The price difference is massive and I don't think there is any significant advantage of the expensive pair, other than probably being available in more shoe sizes and probably multiple width fittings," said Lindsay.
"Both are leather and very similar in terms of being a good school shoe for a young girl. There is support from a T-bar fastening system and with a similar heel height - not too high or too low."
Lindsay, who trained as a podiatrist at The University of Salford and runs clinics in Chorley and Wilmslow, says it is vital to get something that offers the right support - with anything too low such as dolly shoes, as well as anything too high, a 'definite no-no'.
She said: "The pair of shoes at the top of this picture below are exactly what you don't want your daughter wearing to school. The other two pairs are much more expensive and on sale from a high end retailer, but are equally as bad for your feet.
"So it's not about where you buy your shoes from but it's knowing what makes a good healthy shoe for vulnerable feet."
She added: "Your child will be wearing these for around eight hours a day, five days a week. School shoes are as important as good trainers are to a runner.
"Children's feet are still growing and developing so it's really important that they are looked after properly. In the ideal world every child would be taken to a specialist shoe shop to have their feet measured and the best shoes available fitted. However, there are many reasons this is not the case.
"The shoes from the most popular and well known high street stores can seem expensive but the cost does cover the service they provide and also factors such as the fact they have half sizes available and often four different width fittings. Despite this I believe if you know what you are looking for you can find good shoes for your child to wear for school on a budget. You can find expensive bad shoes as well as good shoes that are much more affordable.
"These boys shoes are very similar, both with the Velcro fastening, but one pair is around £12 and the other more than £50 but you would struggle to tell which is which."
She added: "I'm not in any way suggesting that everyone should go out and buy cheap shoes, but if you are on a tight budget then good shoes can still be found. If you have a child you know has unusually wide feet or slim feet you probably are still best to go to a shoe fitting retailer."
Lindsay says independent retailers often have a choice of several different brands to choose from, while supermarkets and chain stores have a lot to offer.
Her tips for buying school shoes
- Go shopping in the afternoon as feet can swell.
- Take the same socks they will wear for school.
- Always check shoe fitting with your child standing.
- Check their balance
- Look for shoe creasing when they squat and rise on to their toes
- Check their heels don’t lift out of the shoes from behind
- Check there is a little growing space around all toes
- Finally get them to walk up and down the shop
Lindsay would advise any parent who is worried or has any concerns about their child's feet to see a HCPC registered chiropodist / podiatrist as they 'are the foot experts'. For more advice you can follow her Instagram page here, or visit her website here.
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