Annemarie Quill: Are parents getting a fair deal?

A question every parent should be asking - is this expensive $100 shoe, skirt or jacket from the required uniform shop any different from a more generic item from Postie or The Warehouse?

No sooner are Christmas decorations down than the Back To School signs are up in shop windows.

With just weeks before term starts, mailboxes full of flyers of children kitted out in new uniforms are a reminder for many parents that it is January not December that stretches the budget to the maximum.

I am all for a school uniform. It looks smart, removes the social implications of clothing and its associated battle for status. It makes sense to have a hardwearing wardrobe that suits all.

Although the "suits all" is questionable as rarely are uniforms stylish or flattering. Perhaps that is the point. Children are at school to learn, think, have fun, make friends and not be in a fashion show.

Retailer Postie Plus has launched a cost-effective generic school uniform range, Schoolzone, with a range of T-shirts, polos, skirts and shorts in school colours, but without their logos. Chief executive Richard Binns said parents would be able to buy quality uniforms for less than $50.

Cheaper uniform options appeal to me. Like many Bay parents, my children attend schools where it is stipulated a uniform must be bought at specific shops. However, a problem arises if the uniform business is given to a small number or one store as a potential price monopoly occurs.

A question every parent should be asking - is this expensive $100 shoe, skirt or jacket from the required uniform shop any different from a more generic item from Postie or The Warehouse?

Yes, the uniform suppliers may have the school logo but is the cost of having this logo justified by the inflated prices in the uniform shops? In many cases, prices are more than double a generic version.

An informal shopping survey found a required white shirt is almost $50, a similar generic version at Postie Plus is $17 or two for $30. A required school shoe is more than $100 but a similar version can be obtained from The Warehouse for $25.

Yes, I signed the school contract to abide by uniform rules. The mother in me thinks maybe I should just suck it up and buy the damn shoes. But the journalist and consumer in me screams no, this is wrong.

For what real difference is there in the Warehouse or Postie cheaper version? In some cases - again noted in the informal survey - the clothing has the same origin such as Made in Fiji. Or has the same fabric. I have bought generic items from Postie and The Warehouse and, in wash and wear, have not noticed a jot of difference from the more expensive items.

Children grow out of, and dirty, uniform easily. I question the logic and even the morality in having to buy something for five times what I can get it for down the road.

The cost of education in terms of books, extra-curricular activities, sport and fundraising is a burden for many families. Schools need to be cognisant of this and prioritise what matters in education.

Is wearing a $20 white shirt from The Warehouse, as opposed to a higher-priced designated item, showing conduct that is "a dangerous example to others", or is it a case of public power not being used appropriately? Parents need to be asking schools, are we getting a fair deal?

-Annemarie Quill is a Bay of Plenty Times journalist