Hi - we are thinking about investing in boots for a 6½ year old (now that shoe sizes only seem to increment annually rather than monthly!). Has anyone got any advice on where is good to go and what we should know in advance?

We live in the East Midlands (between Derby, Nottingham and Leicester - all are easily reachable).

Thanks!

I bought my daughter a pair of Brasher boots and they have proved great.

most outdoor manufacturers don't tend to stick to the sizings of boots so just try everything

I think the peter storm langsdale won an award for best child boot.

Have a gander round Lidl and Aldi, a friend of mine says they have some pretty good all round boots for little'uns, and won't cost a fortune as they grow up.

i've always used Gelert waterproof breathable boots for my lad, the come in at around 15 quid and have all been superb, and as they dont look like a clumpy leather boot he wears them all the time :)

It's a long time since I was that age, and I don't have kids myself, but I believe the same rules apply to kids as adults... if the boot is uncomfortable then you'll end up with one miserable child on a day out. Uncomfortable boots on a child are far worse than on the most moaning/compaining of adults.

I'd go to somewhere with professional boot fitting services which is what my parents did with me. They can give you an idea of what boot to buy even if you end up buying it somewhere cheaper... Just don't let them know in advance.

Unfortunately clothing kids can be an expensive business as within year it's usually too small.

This summer we were going to hire a pair of boots from George Fisher in Keswick (like we did last year. The hire boots were brand new out of the box but I can't recall the name). This year was the same. Only the excellent salesman told us he had a pair of used boots which were less than the cost of hiring. George Fisher have a scheme where you trade in the child's boots and get a credit towards the replacement pair of half the cost of the traded in pair. I think it only works if the first pair are bought new. Anyway, we got an excellent pair of Meindl's for £13. As expected the used boots are barely used. George Fisher sprayed them with Nikwax before we left the shop. They fit perfectly as you would expect from a pair of boots bought from GF. Our 7 year-old walked up Dalehead & Hindscarth from Newlands Church the day after purchase without a murmur and no ill effects. Best bit, of course, is that we have spent very little money and we know she will grow out of the boots very quickly, certainly she will outgrow them before they are worn out. I cannot recommend GF boot fitting highly enough. They don't do boots by mail order though. I know GF are nowhere near where Jackie lives but if you were in Keswick it is well worth popping in and seeing what they have available. They also, as expected, have an excellent range of children's boots. There may be boot shops near you who run a similar scheme to GF.