Get prepped for the new term with Ealing Broadway’s go-to stores for the essentials, arts and crafts, books, lunch boxes plus grooming and beauty finds for tweens and teens plus kids-eat-free offers and special menus.

With our Preloved School Uniform Shop and Summer Live, family movies plus really easy parking and public transport, we’re taking the headache out of back-to-school shopping.

Plan a day out or come back over the holidays to keep them entertained and get organised…

The essentials…

Image provided by Clarks

From uniform to regulation black shoes and sports kits, we’ve created the ultimate downloadable back-to-school guide so you can tick off the key pieces as you go (bucket hats and roll-up pencil cases are very popular…). Plus, we’ve got Marks & Spencer, Clarks, Decathlon, Foot Locker, H&M, JD Sports, Primark and Smiggle.

Also don’t miss our inspired Preloved School Uniform Shop which is running Sunday 30th July 10am-4pm outside of Tesco Express. You can donate preloved uniform in the run-up to the event but otherwise just come along and get what you need for free (it’ll be running the same weekend as the arrival of Summer Live).

Don’t forget: head to Vision Express and David Clulow for optician check-ups and pick up kids’ vitamins, antihistamine and more from Boots, Superdrug and Holland and Barrett.

Bags, water bottles and lunch boxes

Image provided by Primark

River Island’s capacious totes and shoppers are the go-to bags for teens at the moment (plus their handy Take Back Scheme means you can donate any three items from any brand for a £5 voucher the next time you shop). See also H&M (where you can also recycle for vouchers if you’re a member) and Accessorize for more carryall inspiration.

Smiggle, Miniso, Marks & Spencer and Primark have rucksacks and backpacks for younger children, water bottles and lunch boxes (you could also head to JD Sports for sporty designs and Flying Tiger Copenhagen for fun ones). Smiggle’s unique pencil cases are also having a moment with the Budz Pop Out and Vibin’ Pop Out.

Grooming and beauty bits for teens

Image provided by The Body Shop

Get stocked up on with natural deodorants and tea tree oil products from The Body Shop and great teen skincare from Boots and Superdrug (CeraVe’s cleansers, moisturisers and toners, Boots’ own range witch hazel and Byoma are inexpensive and good for all skin types). Don’t forget the basics: head to Poundland for toothpaste, cotton wool and hair accessories in one quick sweep.

Kids-eat-for-free and children’s menus to know

Image provided by Turtle Bay

Enjoy a stress-free lunch with a kids-eat-free menu from neighbourhood bistro Bread Street Kitchen and Bar – with macaroni and cheese, bangers and mash and burgers when you order an adult meal from the a la carte menu. Castano Lounge is also great for delicious all-day breakfasts alongside free Cawston Press juice drinks and hummus snacking pots while Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen has hot wings and tenders that no one can resist.

Or try the delicious Caribbean flavours of Turtle Bay which has a host of vegan choices plus a kids’ menu of Mini Kingston Grill down brunch with mains of cheese and chicken burgers with free soft drinks until 5pm.

On the go? Head to Bubble Magik for cooling bubble teas or Auntie Anne’s, Leonidas and Benji’s Buns for sweet treats. Plus, we’re always home to the crowd pleasers with itsu, Wasabi, wagamama and Starbucks. If they’ve been amazing then D’licious has everything from ice creams and gelato to waffles, crepes, milkshakes, smoothies and sundaes.

Keep checking our offers page for special summer kids’ menus too.

Stationery, books, arts and crafts

Image provided by Smiggle

One handy tip for encouraging them to do their homework is to create a home study space they’ll love. Even if they’re working at the kitchen table, if they’ve got an organised pencil case, post-its and highlighters, things are that much more simple – try the winning stationery at Flying Tiger Copenhagen, Smiggle and Miniso; they’ve also got art supplies including sketchpads and paints. For helpful study books and inspired reads, head to Waterstones and WHSmith and iEmpire has great deals on tablets, laptops and phones.

(Once term time starts, Ealing Central Library offers accessible computers, study areas and a children’s library plus Explore Learning is on hand with friendly and knowledgeable maths and english tutoring classes.)

The treat to make it all worth their time

Avoid the endless moaning that ‘they’re bored’ with shopping treats. Flying Tiger Copenhagen and Miniso is perfect for finding little gifts for £10 and under – especially card games, building blocks and crafting sets. For tweens and teens, there’s gift sets at The Body Shop and plants for their room from Greenka.

End-of-the-day entertainment

Image provided by Ealing Project

Enjoy incredible live music at Ealing Broadway with Summer Live in Town Square. We’ll be hosting uplifting free weekend gigs from local artists and bands all summer long so pull up a deckchair and enjoy the party. Running from 29th July to 3rd September for six weeks, it’s your chance to discover new and emerging local talent and lose yourself in sunshine and celebrations as summer takes over Ealing Broadway.

You can also head to The Ealing Project as summer movies are still going strong with Barbie (out 21 July), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (out 4 August) and Strays (out 18 August).

Coming down? Share your photos and tag us @ealingbroadway & #EalingBroadway

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