PRESS ASSOCIATION -- Parents are typically paying out more than £1,000 a year to send a child to state school, a poll suggests.
Uniforms, stationery, books trip, and after-school activities such as swimming lessons are pushing up the cost, according to a survey by eBay and Mumsnet.
The poll of almost 1,000 parents found that one in four (26%) admit school costs are leaving them with less money, with a fifth (19%) saying they have had to cut back on holidays and days out.
Overall, an analysis of the survey figures suggests that parents typically shell out £341 a term for each child at state school, or £1,023 a year, eBay and Mumsnet said.
With 9.6 million children in state schools, it means British parents are collectively spending £7.8 billion a year on back to school essentials, they claimed.
The survey found that parents believe a good pair of shoes is the most important thing to equip their child with for the start of the school year, followed by new school uniform.
A good laptop or computer and stationery is considered the least important.
Helen Rowley, from Mumsnet, said: "We know from the survey that going back to school has an impact on most families' budgets and Mumsnet welcome anything that can help ease this burden.
"We know that Mumsnetters frequently turn to online retailers like eBay to hunt out bargains on uniform, books, sports equipment or musical instruments."