The cost of living crisis has been hitting households hard as prices continue to rise and inflation hits a 40-year high.
Summer is already a more expensive time for families, but as the return to school approaches it's been revealed that two-thirds of UK parents are worried about rising back to school costs.
According to sharing app OLIO, buying new items post-summer is set to cost an average of almost £300 per child, with parents estimating that they buy an average of 16 new items at the start of the school year.
The most commonly replaced items include shoes, shirts, trousers, sports trainers and accessories such as new lunchboxes, pens, and notebooks.
The cost is staggering, but OLIO has revealed that parents could be missing out on a simple trick that can save them hundreds of pounds.
Here's how you can cut down on the cost of back to school purchases.
How to save on back to school costs
According to data from OLIO, parents in the UK could save up to £205 per child simply by sourcing second-hand items, instead of buying brand new.
It revealed that parents are throwing away an average of 13 old items a year — despite admitting that most of them are still in perfectly useable condition.
Many parents feel pressured to buy brand new items, with 25% saying that the pressure comes from their children, while 34% said they were worried about their children being picked on.
But rising costs mean that a staggering 83% of UK parents say they will likely turn to charities and free-sharing platforms for back-to-school items in light of the cost of living crisis.
With children growing quickly, lots of their school items might not be of use to them any more, but by giving old items away instead of throwing them in the bin, parents can all help each other out.
OLIO is calling for parents to use sharing platforms like theirs to give away their items to parents who can use them, and in turn they could also find items for their children too.
Tessa Clarke, co-founder and CEO of OLIO, said: "As a parent, I know the back-to school drill all too well, and it’s crazy to think that so many perfectly useable items are being thrown away each year when they could easily find a new home – especially when we are in the midst of one of the biggest cost-of-living crises we’ve ever seen.”
Tessa added: “This back-to-school season, we are on a mission to get more people giving away instead of throwing away."
Parents can give and find unwanted school items on OLIO's free sharing platform, which connects local neighbours with each other so that they can give away things they don't need.
