Haven't you grown! Local mum Jenny mentioned the other day that she had just bought her child their 6th pair of school shoes in a year. At an average of £40 a pair that really does start to add up.

So just how many times a year should a child need new shoes?

My own kids feet don't seem to grow and a good pair of shoes easily lasts them 6 months to a year so I was slightly concerned to hear some kids feet grow every 6 weeks! I decided to catch up with Kim Jackson at local shoe shop Klodhoppers for a bit of advice (and a sneaky 10% off when you mention KalliKids!).

As we approach October Half Term, it may well be that if your child didn’t need new school shoes in the August Back to School term, then it’s likely that he or she will need them now!

Most of our school shoes tend to arrive at the end of July - this is when we have a full selection of styles and size runs to choose from, i.e. the best of the collection. However, we always like to top-up sizes and styles in time for Half Term and while the collection will not be as extensive as it would be in August, there will still be plenty to choose from.

As professional fitters we can always factor in that bit of extra growing room, but all school shoes have this extra space ‘programmed in’ to the size anyway. Most school-age children’s feet grow in rapid erratic bursts throughout the year, yet on average you only need to buy two pairs of school shoes per academic year. Of course, if your child is very ‘hard’ on their shoes, (they may climb a lot, play football, or use their shoe as a brake for their scooter of bike) then they may trash their shoes and need more than two pairs.

School shoes are not indestructible - children will always find a way to destroy them! School shoes should be sturdy, durable, comfortable and preferably breathable. If this is your child’s main item of footwear for 5 days a week, and for 6-7 hours a day, then it is a false economy and inadvisable for your child’s long-term foot health to choose a cheap, ill-fitting option. If you walk your child to school then invest in a pair of wellies for their journey and get them to change into their shoes when they get to school. You wouldn’t want to sit in wet shoes all day, so why should they?

It is advisable to get your childs feet measured every term. You can help us by being prepared – bring the correct school socks with you for fitting your child’s school shoes. We can lend you some, of course, but if your child is already wearing socks, and ready to be measured then that can speed up things.

To get the best value from your new purchase, always clean and polish your child’s school shoes. This maintains the optimum condition of the leather and prolongs the life of the shoe. Why would you invest £30-40 in an item, and then not look after it properly? Most quality suppliers will guarantee a child’s shoe or boot for approximately 3 months normal wear and tear (then there is the likelihood of a growth spurt). The retailer is not responsible for excessive wear and tear, such as “scooter-toe” – if your child scoots then encourage them to wear an old pair of trainers. A leather school shoe, even one with a toe or scuff guard is not designed for that sort of hammering! (As far as I’m aware, they don’t make steel toe-capped boots in very small sizes yet!!)

Remember to look for the current Society of Shoe Fitters logo to ensure that you are putting your child’s feet in the best qualified hands. They only have one pair of feet to see them through life – make sure they are looked after with great care.

Kim Jackson (M.S.S.F – Member of the Society of Shoe Fitters) Director of Klodhoppers (Hove & Haywards Heath) 

Klodhoppers stock a great range of kids shoes at their branches in Hove and Haywards Heath and are offering KalliKids families 10% off this October. Just pop in and mention Kallikids.

I'm guilty of having a bit of a small shoe fetish and can't resist them. They're just so cute!

How many pairs of shoes do your kids have?