CARDIFF — A father who began a school uniform swap shop at his children’s primary school has expanded the idea to more than 200 schools, with thousands of items now being exchanged through a website.
Jon, from Cardiff, started the project four years ago to help families facing the cost of uniforms during the cost-of-living crisis. He said the aim was to ease a bill that can quickly rise into hundreds of pounds for parents with more than one child.
The Free School clothes scheme began with a plastic collection box outside his home and has since moved online. Jon says 8,000 items have now been exchanged, and he believes the system could save Welsh families more than £50m a year in total.
He said the scheme is designed to make second-hand school clothes feel normal, rather than something to be hidden away.
How the free swap shop works for parents and schools
The website, which launched in March, lets parents list good-quality outgrown school clothes for free and allows other families in the same school community to browse and request what they need. Items can then be collected locally, making the exchange simple and discreet.
Jon said the idea is especially helpful for larger families, where the cost of jumpers, trousers, shirts, shoes and PE kit can be multiplied across several children. He pointed to UK government figures showing the average annual cost of a uniform at about £343 for primary pupils and £442 for secondary pupils.
His own children, Tom, 10, and Sion, six, help sort and bag the clothes. Tom described the early days as chaotic, when the family front room was filled with school clothes and tables of garments were arranged by age and school.
The scheme has also drawn support from parents who say it helps them find what they need quickly, without having to buy new items each time a child grows out of them.
Parents say swapping uniforms cuts costs and reduces waste
Elise, a mother of three, recently collected a new uniform for her son Charlie and said the scheme saves money at a time when clothing costs can be difficult to manage. She said she often looks for jumpers, T-shirts, trousers and PE kit through the swap shop before considering anything new.
She said it makes little sense to buy new clothes when pre-loved items can be handed on and used again. In her experience, families usually find someone in the school community who already has the right size or item and is willing to pass it on.
The initiative has grown partly because of wider concern about school uniform costs. Research from Save the Children and the Baby Bank Alliance network found that almost half of parents are worried about the expense.
Jon said the environmental message has also helped attract interest, because families are being asked to save both money and clothing that would otherwise go unused.
Scheme grows beyond Cardiff as schools in Wales and London join in
Jon started the scheme at Ysgol Treganna in Cardiff in 2022 and still helps organise the swaps there with deputy head Gareth Evans. At the end of each half term, they check the lost property that has not been claimed, and pupils help bag it up to be added to the website.
Evans said the process has become part of the school routine and helps ensure usable clothes are redirected rather than left behind. Jon believes the model could work in many more schools, pointing out that there are about 30,000 schools across the UK.
Kingsbury High School in London, which has 2,000 pupils, is also taking part. Its sustainability lead, Tara Randall, said the discreet approach removes the stigma some families feel about asking for help and makes it easier for parents to arrange swaps directly.
In Wales, some families can receive a grant of up to £200 per child for school equipment if they are on a low income or their child is in local authority care. In England, new rules due in September will limit the number of branded uniform items to three, plus a tie for secondary schools, in a move intended to help parents save money.
Why the organiser wants a culture change around second hand clothes
Jon said the bigger goal is not only to reduce bills but to change attitudes to second-hand school clothing. He wants families to see reusing uniforms as a normal part of school life rather than a last resort.
He said that, because the scheme sits within school communities, it can be more personal and practical than a central collection point. Parents and carers can arrange their own drop-offs and pick-ups, which he said may also help families connect with one another.
For some secondary schools, that discreet system matters because pupils are often conscious of what their peers think. The swap shop is intended to avoid that pressure while still giving families access to what they need.
Jon says the project is still growing, but its appeal already lies in its mix of financial relief, sustainability and community support.
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