What is in this guide
To find a secondhand school uniform shop, start with your school’s website or office, then ask which parent-run shop or swap group serves that school. Before buying, match the item to the current uniform list, check its measurements and condition, and confirm how collection or swapping will work.
Have the uniform list, a short list of missing items and a well-fitting garment ready for comparison. The aim is to fill those gaps without collecting a bag of clothing your child cannot use.
1. Find the school’s current secondhand channel
Search the full school name and suburb with “secondhand uniforms”, “uniform shop” or “uniform swap”. Try “second hand” as two words too. On the school website, look under uniform information, parent information or the P&C or parent association.
If the results are unclear, ask the office:
Does the school have a secondhand uniform shop, clothing pool or parent swap group? Where can I find the current opening arrangements and joining instructions?
A school page can point you towards a separate parent-run service. Coogee Public School P&C, for example, describes a volunteer-run uniform shop with changing secondhand stock. That is one school’s arrangement, not a promise of availability elsewhere. [S1]
Before making a trip, confirm the next opening, payment options and whether anyone can check for the item and size you need. If shop hours clash with work, ask whether another adult can collect for you or whether another collection arrangement is available.
2. Choose a shop, swap or private sale deliberately
Ask how the particular service works rather than relying on its name. St Leonard’s College says its shop runs on donations and directs people who want to sell privately to a separate Facebook group. [S2]
Use these questions to compare the options available to you:
| Option | Ask before committing | Decision to make |
|---|---|---|
| School or parent-run shop | Can I inspect or try on the item, and what are the secondhand exchange arrangements? | Does the available garment fit and can I attend collection? |
| Parent swap group | Is this a direct exchange, a giveaway or a paid listing? What are the group rules? | Do both households agree on exactly what changes hands? |
| Private sale | Can the seller provide measurements, clear photographs and details of faults? | Is the total cost, including postage or travel, worthwhile for the usable items? |
For a swap, agree whether either person expects an item in return. Do not assume that bringing a donation entitles you to take something home. For a bundle, count only the pieces you actually need when deciding what it is worth to your household.
3. Match the garment before checking the price
Keep the current school list beside the listing. Check the colour, style, crest where required, and whether it is the everyday or sports version. Ask the school about an older design before accepting the seller’s assurance that it is still allowed.
Treat the size label as a starting point. Ask for the garment laid flat, with the measurement points explained: underarm width and shoulder-to-hem length for a shirt, or waistband width and leg length for trousers. Compare those with an item that fits now, measured in the same way.
Ask whether hems have been shortened or other alterations made. If trying on is possible, have your child sit, bend and raise their arms before deciding. Avoid buying several future sizes simply because they are available.
4. Inspect the parts that need to work
For an in-person purchase, use this check before paying. For an online listing, request close-up photographs of anything unclear.
- Look at the front, back, collar, cuffs, knees and seat for marks, holes or thin fabric.
- Check seams and hems, including previous repairs.
- Open and close zips and check buttons and fasteners.
- Inspect the waistband and ask about loose or stretched elastic.
- Read the care label and decide whether the garment suits your household’s washing routine.
- Check for existing name labels and plan how to replace or cover them.
Decide which faults you are willing to accept. A missing button may be a manageable job if you can replace it; a zip repair you will never organise leaves the item unusable. Do not buy a stained garment on the assumption that an unfamiliar treatment will restore it.
5. Agree the handover in one message
Adapt this enquiry after reading the shop or group’s instructions:
I’m looking for [item and size] in the current [school] uniform. Is it still available? Could you confirm the measurements, any alterations or faults, and whether it is for sale, swap or giveaway? I can collect [available window].
Confirm the exact items, any payment or exchange, and a collection place both adults agree to. Check permission before proposing a handover on school grounds. Keep children’s names and photographs out of public listings, and share collection details privately.
If the right item is unavailable, ask about checking again or posting a wanted request where group rules allow it. Set your own deadline for finding the missing piece so the search does not run past the day it is needed.
6. Ask before passing uniforms on
Check what the receiving shop currently accepts. Coogee’s P&C requests freshly washed school items without major stains or tears; St Leonard’s asks for washed items in excellent condition. These are local acceptance rules. [S1, S2]
Remove personal labels where practical, describe faults honestly and confirm the drop-off arrangement. Ask whether items are donations or offered for sale, and what happens to anything the shop cannot accept.
Start with one action: send your school the enquiry about its current secondhand channel, with the item and size you need most.
Related on Dovelyne: School uniforms: what a year costs and how to spend less · When to replace school shoes · Keeping white school shirts white
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