Kitting your kids out for school will cost you dear

Parents will be feeling the pinch as ‘Back to School' fever sets in this week because kitting out a child for the start of the new term in September could cost a massive £1623, according to Sheilas' Wheels home insurance. With the latest gadgets and designer ‘must-haves' bumping up the total value of their son or daughter's school gear, it's crucial for parents to make sure they have ample home contents cover.

According to the poll of almost 900 parents of school-age children, more than two fifths (43 per cent) of kids take a mobile phone to school with them - and surprisingly one in five (21 per cent) are under ten years old. Even hair straighteners now have a place alongside protractors and calculators: around one in thirty (three per cent) - or one pupil per class - keeps a pair in their school bag.

Other gadgets causing rucksacks to bulge are MP3 players and hand-held games consoles. A fifth (19 per cent) of children are carrying around the latest iPod or MP3 player at school whilst one in seven (15 per cent) children have taken a hand-held games console, such as a Play Station Portable or Nintendo DS Lite, into class or onto the playground.

As well as ‘must-have' electronics, children also need to be seen wearing designer label trainers and sportswear according to the poll. In fact, 41 per cent of parents surveyed admitted that they felt pressured by their children to buy them a ‘top of the range' gym kit.

Therefore, it is no surprise that some fashion-conscious pupils could be taking personal items worth over £1360 into school - which is up by 20 per cent on last year.

In the current credit crunch, parents are trying to lessen the pressure on their purse strings by shopping around for the only part of their child's school kit that isn't up for discussion: the school uniform. According to the poll, 87 per cent of parents admitted to shopping around for the cheapest price with 41 per cent buying from their local supermarket and 28 per cent from high street stores, rather than the traditional school shop.

Parents with children at schools where it isn't compulsory to buy uniforms direct from the school or a school shop could save almost four times by adding shirts and sweatshirts to their supermarket shopping trolley as part of a weekly shop.

Jacky Brown at Sheilas' Wheels home insurance, commented: "Every parent knows that it's costly to kit out a child for school with the basics, let alone designer gear and must-have gadgets. Although there are ways to save - such as shopping around for the cheapest uniform - it's never cost-effective to scrimp on insurance cover.

"If your son or daughter can't be persuaded to keep their mobile phone or iPod at home then it's crucial to have adequate cover for personal possessions away from the home in case of theft, loss or damage during the school day. With children under ten now owning the latest gizmos, it's important to make sure they take responsibility for keeping their belongings safe and secure."

Sheilas' Wheels home insurance offers some top tips for parents ahead of the new school term:

Make sure you shop around for the best deals - You could make considerable savings by shopping around for your child's uniform, at supermarkets and high street stores, by comparing prices and then getting the cheapest deal. To pick up a real bargain, check out local charity shops or ask other parents for hand-me-downs.

Make sure your child's school bag is insured - Make sure you have cover for personal possessions whilst away from the home on your contents insurance. This will insure your family's possessions against loss, theft and damage whilst out and about, including whilst they're at school.

Make sure high-value items are left at home - To reduce the likelihood of having to make a claim, ban or restrict the number of high value items that your children regularly take to school. As a compromise, perhaps limit it to a birthday or the last week of term.

Offer guidance on how your kids should look after their belongings - make sure that your children know to take good care of their things e.g. not leave their bag unattended; lock lockers; avoid leaving valuables on pegs; be discrete and don't ‘show off' to class mates with a new gadget or mobile; don't get distracted at a bus stop or on public transport and keep a tight hold on bags; and so on.