Some of the Irish parenting bloggers have been writing about back to school costs this week. It all started with Barnados, publishing a school cost survey infographic with statistics like the ones below. It paints a grim picture…
It is very interesting to see the different perspectives each blogger has. The biggest factor is the number of kids you have.
I have just a 5 year old, who is going to Senior Infants this year. Luckily, most of his uniform still fits him. The only thing I bought so far is a new long sleeve shirt. My OH suggested we have a look at second hand shops here in Bray for uniform gear, and we found a perfect long sleeve shirt for him which cost me 50c. Boom.
His Granny bought a pair of trousers in Tesco, which are a darker grey than his other trousers, but I doubt anyone would dare to say : “excuse ma’m, your son is wearing trousers the wrong kind of grey …”
His tracksuit is a bit worn, but will have to do, because the tracksuit top is the one with the crest and Im not going to pay 50 bucks for a new one, specially if you take in consideration that next year, my boy will change to an all boy school (not exactly what I wished for him but catholic Ireland is still going strong), with a completely different uniform and tracksuit.
I’m not sure if his school shoes fit (im a terrible mum!) but if they don’t, we will get a new pair down the town. Shoes are one thing we don’t buy cheap, because we know how bad cheap shoes can be for little feet.
Oh yeah, and he needs a new coat!(makes mental note…) So that will be about 30e or more.
So, whats left are the school books. Here is my 5 year old list for Senior Infants. 130 euros on books for a 5 year old. A bit much no?
So the total back to school expenses for me: 130 + 50c + 30 (future coat) + estimated 50 (future shoes) = 211.50 euros
wow. I wish I hadn’t done the sum… We don’t have an stable income in our house, but we have savings, and no debts, so yeah we can afford this. Does that make it ok? What do you think?
Here are other parent bloggers and their back to school expenses:
The Clothesline - It all adds up
Wholesome Ireland - School Expenses
The Mama’s Hip - Homeschooling haul and chatter
Awfully Chipper - Back to school in America
Learner Mama - Back to school – a costly business
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