The new school year checklist: an hour in late August that saves the autumn
The eleven things to do before the first day back, in order: the dates, the uniform, the systems, the emails, the clubs, the money, and the one conversation to have with the other grown-up.
By The AskBobbie team · 29 September 20262 min read
The first week of September brings a term's worth of letters in four days. An hour in the last week of August makes them land somewhere. In order:
- The year's dates. The school's term dates and INSET days into the calendar, all of them, today. Where to find them.
- The national dates. If you have a Year 6: secondary applications close 31 October. A nursery child: primary applications close 15 January. Year 6 SATs 10 to 13 May; GCSEs from 10 May. The list.
- Uniform. Check what still fits. Since September 2026 the school can require no more than three branded items; everything else can come from the supermarket. Name everything.
- The systems. ParentPay, Arbor, ClassDojo or whichever the school uses: log in, check the details, and add a second email if you can. Where the box is in each.
- One place for the letters. Decide where school email goes: a forwarding rule from your mailbox, or the school given one address. The plan. If it is Bobbie, set the address up now, before the letters start.
- The class WhatsApp group. Mute it, and agree who watches it. The survival guide.
- Clubs. Sign-ups open in the first week and places go in a day. Know which clubs you want and be ready to pay on the day the item appears.
- Dinner money. Top up ParentPay before the first day, or apply for free school meals if you are on Universal Credit; from September 2026 every child in a Universal Credit household qualifies. School money.
- Wraparound care. Breakfast and after-school club bookings open early and fill early. Book September now.
- Medical forms. Any medicine at school needs a form and the original box; asthma pumps and EpiPens need a spare set for the office.
- The conversation. Ten minutes with the other grown-up: who does drop-off and pick-up on which days, who watches the class group, where the letters go, and how the other person finds out what is on. If the answer to the last one is "asks me", change it. Inviting them to Bobbie is one way; a shared calendar is another.
Then the letters can come.
Further reading
Questions people ask
- When should I do this?
- The last week of August, before the first day back, because the first week of September brings the year's worth of letters at once and this is the hour that makes them manageable.
- What if we are starting a new school?
- The same list, with more of it done for you by the welcome pack. Read the pack with the calendar open, and give the school your email address on the first day.