Buying school shoes – insights from a podiatrist

Clarks Australia values input from foot health experts to develop their range of shoes and have a long history in partnering with Podiatrists. They asked one of Australia’s leading Podiatrist’s to provide some key insights on kids shoes − in particular school shoes.

Meet Matthew Dilnot
Matt Dilnot is a past President of the Australian Podiatry Association of Victoria, a supervising clinician at La Trobe University, a clinical examiner of current Victorian Podiatry Graduates and National Podiatry Consultant to Clarks Shoes. Matt is a senior Podiatrist who has been practicing at the Melbourne Foot Clinic for over 20 years.
Matt has a wide range of clinical experience starting out as a new graduate at the Alfred Hospital. Over time Matthew has expanded his practice to include sports medicine, having worked at past Olympics and University games with elite athletes, and medical care as well as enjoying routine podiatry treatment. He is passionate about helping people get the most out of life and enjoy the freedom to do what they want.
Matthew Dilnot
 – Podiatrist, M.A.Pod.A , B.App.Sc.Pod(Hons)
- Deputy Dean, Clinical School, La Trobe University
- Former President Australian Podiatry Association (VIC)

What are the main things to look for when school shoe shopping with your children?
Always attend a specialist children’s shoe store where the staff have received proper training in shoe fitting (link to list of platinum & retail stores). Ensure that the store stocks a wide range of shoes and fittings. Both of your child’s feet should be measured each time and the shoe fitter should always check the fit by physically examining the shoes on both feet. The shoe fitter should check the shoe has sufficient depth and width to prevent pressure on the toes and nails and allow enough room for growth over a 6 month period (depending on the age of the child). Also always aim to buy shoes with full grain leather uppers – these offer the best durability, and stretch and breathe well.

Why is fit so important with school shoes?
Kids spend more time in school shoes than any others so getting the right pair is important. Children’s feet develop rapidly within the first twelve years of their life. Because their feet are so flexible when young they can contort their feet into many styles of shoes. Children are not good at providing feedback when being fitted with shoes as they are strongly influenced by styles and colours. It is therefore critically important that they are fitted by a trained fitter who can use objective measures to assess accurate fit. One of the most important investments a parent will make in their child’s comfort and future foot health in that one pair of shoes.

We lay the foundations for our feet in our childhood and neglect of their feet during the early years can have serious consequences for foot health as well as the posture and function of the legs and back. Uncomfortable shoes can also cause sore feet for children when running around at school and participating in school sport. We under-estimate how these subtle choices in childhood have quite significant implications for quality of life measures both during childhood as well as later in adult life.

Why do you recommend Clarks school shoes?
I have been recommending Clarks school shoes to my clients for over 20 years. They have the most complete sizing range with true whole and half sizes across multiple widths. This ensures that virtually every child’s foot in Australia can be fitted perfectly. The quality of construction is second to none and they have an excellent training program for staff to ensure every pair of Clarks shoes sold is fitted by a trained expert.

Find out more on the Clarks range on their website

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