Retail Occasions Series: UK Back to School 2026

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Key findings
• Summary of Back to School 2026
• Trend insight - stores
• Trend insight - online
• Consumer attitudes
• Penetration, financing attitudes and key retailer analysis
• Uniform
• Penetration, financing attitudes and key retailer analysis
• Sportswear & sports equipment
• Penetration, financing attitudes and key retailer analysis
• Stationery
• Penetration, financing attitudes and key retailer analysis
• School accessories
• Penetration, financing attitudes and key retailer analysis
• Books
• Penetration, financing attitudes and key retailer analysis
• Methodology & contacts

List of Table

List of Tables

• Retailer ratings across key measures - grocers, 2026
• Retailer ratings across key measures - non-food retailers, 2026
• Secondhand back to school products purchased, 2026
• Products intended to purchase, 2025 & 2026
• Percentage point change - top 10 retailers shopped at for uniform, 2025 to 2026
• Products purchased - trousers, dresses and skirts, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - trousers, dresses and skirts, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - trousers, dresses and skirts, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - shirts and blouses, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - shirts and blouses, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - shirts and blouses, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - blazers & jackets, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - blazers & jackets, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - blazers & jackets, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - underwear, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - underwear, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - underwear, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - sweaters, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - sweaters, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - sweaters, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - footwear, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - footwear, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - footwear, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Categories bought on impulse by uniform shoppers, 2025, 2026 & percentage point change
• Percentage point change - top 10 retailers shopped at for sportswear 2025 to 2026
• Products purchased - sportswear, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - sportswear, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - sportswear, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - sports footwear, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - sports footwear, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - sports footwear, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - sports equipment, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - sports equipment, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - sports equipment, 2025 & 2026
• Categories bought on impulse by sportswear & sports equipment shoppers, 2025, 2026 & percentage point change
• Percentage point change - top 10 retailers shopped at for sportswear & sports equipment 2025 to 2026
• Products purchased - pens and pencils, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - pens and pencils, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - pens and pencils, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - stationery essentials, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - stationery essentials, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - stationery essentials, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - other stationery, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - other stationery, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - other stationery, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - notebooks, diaries and organisers, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - notebooks, diaries and organisers, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - notebooks, diaries and organisers, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - paper, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - paper, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - paper, 2025 & 2026
• Categories bought on impulse by stationery shoppers, 2025, 2026 & percentage point change
• Percentage point change - top 10 retailers shopped at for school accessories 2025 to 2026
• Products purchased - food accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - food accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - food accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - school bag, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - school bag, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - school bag, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - hair accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - hair accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - hair accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Categories bought on impulse by school accessories shoppers, 2025, 2026 & percentage point change
• Percentage point change - top 10 retailers shopped at for books 2025 to 2026
• Products purchased - books for lessons, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - books for lessons, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - books for lessons, 2025 & 2026
• Products purchased - revision guides, 2025 & 2026
• Average spend - revision guides, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers used - revision guides, 2025 & 2026
• Categories bought on impulse by book shoppers, 2025, 2026 & percentage point change

List of Figure

List of Figures

• Gender and age of children that consumers purchased uniform for, 2026
• Back to school spending by category, 2026
• Most used promotions on back to school products, 2026
• Most purchased stationery categories, 2026
• Back to school shoppers purchasing sports products 2021-2026
• Top retailers shopped at for school accessories, 2026
• Financial wellbeing compared to last year, 2025 & 2026
• Total back to school spending compared to last year, 2025 & 2026
• How consumers financed back to school spending, 2025 & 2026
• The proportion of back to school shoppers that stated they actively cut back on spending this year compared to last, 2025 & 2026
• Research undertaken before purchasing back to school, 2026 & change on 2025
• Influence of promotions on back to school shopping habits, 2025 & 2026
• Influence of promotions on when consumers purchase back to school products, 2025 & 2026
• The types of promotions that are appealing and have been used, 2025
• The number of schoolchildren purchased for, 2025 & 2026
• The proportion of back to school spending on each category, 2025 & 2026
• Retailers that did the best job promoting back to school, 2026 & change on 2025
• Secondhand back to school 2026 item penetration (by gender and age of child bought for), & 2023, 2025
• Secondhand items purchased, 2026 & change on 2025
• Secondhand sportswear or sports equipment items purchased, 2026 & change on 2025
• Reasons for purchasing secondhand items, 2026 & change on 2025
• Reasons for not purchasing secondhand items, 2026 & change on 2025
• Intention to purchase any more products for back to school throughout this academic year (2026/26) (by gender and age of child bought for), 2023-2026
• Proportion of back to school shoppers that purchased throughout the year, during the last academic year, 2023, 2025 & 2026
• Purchases made throughout the year, 2026
• What's driving retailer selection summary, 2026
• Back to school 2026 uniform penetration (by gender and age of child bought for), & 2023, 2025
• Top 10 retailers shopped at for uniform, 2025 & 2026 & change on 2025
• What's driving retailer selection (uniform), 2026 & change on 2025
• Research undertaken before purchasing back to school (uniform), 2026 & change on 2025
• Consumers using each channel for back to school uniform purchases, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each store type for back to school uniform purchases, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each device for back to school uniform purchases, 2025 & 2026
• Fulfilment options for uniform purchases made online, 2025 & 2026
• Requirement and use of alteration services, 2025 & 2026
• Reasons why embroidery services were not used, 2025 & 2026
• Awareness of uniform embroidery/alteration services, 2026 & change on 2025
• Factors of importance (uniform), 2025 & 2026
• Back to school 2026 trousers dresses and skirts penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 trousers dresses and skirts penetration
• Trousers fit, length & style purchased, 2026
• Skirt length & style purchased, 2026
• Back to school 2026 shirts & blouses penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 shirts & blouses penetration
• Shirts fit purchased, 2026
• Blouses fit purchased, 2026
• Back to school 2026 blazers & jackets penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 blazers & jackets penetration
• Back to school 2026 underwear penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 underwear penetration
• Back to school 2026 sweaters penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 sweaters penetration
• Back to school 2026 footwear penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 footwear penetration
• Shoe fit purchased, 2026
• Back to school 2026 accessories penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 accessories penetration
• Planned/impulse purchases (overall uniform), 2026
• Back to school 2026 sportswear & sports equipment penetration (by gender & age of child bought for) and 2025 & 2023 penetration
• Top 10 retailers shopped at for sportswear and sports equipment 2025 & 2026 & change on 2025
• What's driving retailer selection (sportswear and sports equipment), 2026 & change on 2025
• Consumers using each channel for purchasing sportswear and equipment, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each store type for purchasing sportswear and equipment, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each device for purchasing sportswear & equipment, 2025 & 2026
• Fulfilment options for sportswear and sports equipment purchases made online, 2025 & 2026
• Back to school 2026 sportswear penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 sportswear penetration
• Back to school 2026 sports footwear penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 sports footwear penetration
• Back to school 2026 sports equipment penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 sports equipment penetration
• Planned/impulse purchases (sportswear and sports equipment), 2026
• Back to school 2026 stationery penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 stationery penetration
• Top 10 retailers shopped at for stationery 2025 & 2026, & change on 2025
• What's driving retailer selection (stationery), 2026 & change on 2025
• Consumers using each channel for purchasing stationery, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each store type for purchasing stationery, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each device for purchasing stationery, 2025 & 2026
• Fulfilment options for stationery purchases made online, 2025 & 2026
• Back to school 2026 pens and pencils penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 pens and pencils penetration
• Back to school 2026 stationery essentials penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 stationery essentials penetration
• Back to school 2026 other stationery penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 other stationery
• Back to school 2026 notebooks, diaries and organisers penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 notebooks, diaries and organisers penetration
• Back to school 2026 paper penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 paper penetration
• Planned/impulse purchases (stationery), 2026
• Back to school 2026 school accessories penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 school accessories penetration
• Top 10 retailers shopped at for school accessories 2025 & 2026, & change on 2025
• What's driving retailer selection (school accessories), 2026 & change on 2025
• Consumers using each channel for purchasing school accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each store type for purchasing school accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each device for purchasing school accessories, 2025 & 2026
• Fulfilment options for school accessories purchases made online, 2025 & 2026
• Back to school 2026 food accessories penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 food accessories penetration
• Back to school 2026 school bag penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 school bag penetration
• Back to school 2026 hair accessories penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 hair accessories penetration
• Planned/impulse purchases (school accessories), 2026
• Back to school 2026 books (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 books penetration
• Top 10 retailers shopped at for books 2025 & 2026, & change on 2025
• What's driving retailer selection (books), 2026 & change on 2025
• Consumers using each channel for purchasing books, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each store type for purchasing books, 2025 & 2026
• Consumers using each device for purchasing books, 2025 & 2026
• Fulfilment options for books purchases made online, 2025 & 2026
• Back to school 2026 books for lessons penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 books for lessons penetration
• Back to school 2026 revision guides penetration (by gender & age of child bought for), 2025 & 2023 revision guides penetration
• Planned/impulse purchases (books), 2026