Complete School Leavers Hoodie Planning Guide
Organising school leavers hoodies is much easier when the important decisions are made in the right order. Before worrying about the final order, decide who is responsible, who the hoodies are for, your deadline, garment and colour choices, the design, personalisation, names, sizes and who at school must approve everything.
Appoint a leavers hoodie organiser
Start by giving one person responsibility for coordinating the project.
A leavers hoodie project can involve pupils, parents, teachers, office staff and senior leaders. If multiple people independently collect information or make changes, it becomes much easier for different versions of the same list to appear.
The main organiser should ideally be responsible for:
agreeing the planning timetable;
confirming who is eligible to participate;
coordinating garment, colour and design decisions;
obtaining the necessary school approval;
collecting or overseeing names and sizes;
keeping one master record of pupil information;
communicating deadlines;
checking the final information before submission.
Other staff or parent volunteers can still help. The important point is that one person owns the master names file of the project.
Use one master names list
Whether you use Excel, Microsoft Forms, Google Forms or another school-approved system to collect information, nominate one master file or dataset.
Avoid maintaining separate versions in email attachments, handwritten lists and different spreadsheets. Corrections can easily be made to one copy but not another.
Only collect information that is actually needed for the project and follow your school's normal approach to handling pupil information.
Think about late changes
Before finalising a named design, consider how the school will handle:
pupils joining the school during the planning period;
pupils leaving;
people deciding to participate after the initial deadline;
staff members being included;
preferred names that differ from the school's formal register.
You do not need to anticipate every possible change. You do need a clear point at which the list becomes final.
Set your leavers hoodie planning timeframe
We work backwards from when you would like pupils to have their hoodies, this allows us to create a timeline with this as the agreed deadline. When you place your order, your Wave Ed account manager will create a timeline for everyone to work towards. We will work out when the shop will need to open/close to meet your required deadline.
A practical planning sequence
Your internal timetable could follow this order:
Appoint the organiser.
Decide when the hoodies are wanted.
Choose the package you would like.
Agree the colour options.
Choose the design approach.
Decide whether to offer personalisation.
Obtain any preliminary school approval.
Communicate the project to pupils and parents.
Open the shop for people to place their orders. Alternativelty if you are opting for a manual option collect names, sizes and colour choices.
Close the collection period.
Check the information.
Obtain final approval where required and proceed with production.
Choosing the package
In the first instance before we set up shops and create artwork proofs we would need a confirmation on the package the school would be proceeding with.
Although the hoodie is the traditional choice for many leavers projects, the appropriate garment will depend on the school, age group and intended use.
When comparing options, think about:
garment style;
available sizes;
colour availability;
where the design can be positioned;
suitability for your chosen artwork;
whether everyone will have the same garment;
whether pupils can choose between options.
Where possible, keep the choice manageable. Offering many garment, colour and design combinations can give pupils more freedom, but it also gives the organiser substantially more information to collect and check if opting for a manual order.
Choose your colours
Each school is different, some will limit the selection to one colour and some will allow all options to be available.
One colour for everyone
The school selects a single garment colour.
This is the simplest approach to communicate and gives the group a consistent appearance.
A small selection of colours
Pupils choose from a shortlist selected by the organiser or school.
This gives pupils some individual choice whilst keeping to a specific theme e.g. school branding.
A wider colour choice
Where the chosen product permits it, a broader selection can give pupils more freedom.
Consider the design at the same time
Garment and print colours should not be decided completely independently.
A design needs sufficient contrast to be clearly visible. If you intend to offer several garment colours, check how the proposed design works against light and dark backgrounds.
School colours can be a useful starting point, but they do not have to dictate the project.
Agree the leavers hoodie design
Agree the design concept before starting the final collection of pupil information.
A typical leavers design might involve:
the leaving year;
pupils' names;
the school name;
school initials;
a school logo or crest;
a design chosen specifically for the year group.
The school should decide which elements are essential and which, if any, pupils can influence.
Should pupils choose the design?
Pupil involvement can be a good way to build enthusiasm, but an unrestricted vote can create practical problems.
A more manageable approach is to first establish which designs are appropriate and feasible, then let pupils choose between a small number of suitable options.
That prevents the winning idea from later having to be rejected because the school does not approve it or it is unsuitable for the garment.
Using the school logo
If a school logo or crest is being incorporated, identify the correct version rather than allowing someone to download whichever image appears first online.
Ask the appropriate member of staff for the school's approved artwork and confirm that its proposed use has been authorised.
Decide on personalisation
Decide whether individual personalisation will be offered and exactly what pupils can choose.
For example, a project might use the same design for everyone while allondividual name or other approved wording on each garment.
Personalisation adds individuality, but it also introduces another piece of pupil-specific information that must be collected and checked.
Before offering it, decide:
whether personalisation is optional or standard;
what type of wording is allowed;
whether nicknames are acceptable;
who will check requested wording;
what happens when wording is unsuitable or ambiguous.
Do not let pupils assume that any requested wording will automatically be accepted. Establish the school's rules first and communicate them clearly.
When the online shop closes we will go through to ensure everything there’s nothing unacceptable, but we always send a list over to the organiser to ensure they are also happy to proceed.
Collect pupils' names carefully
If pupils' names are going to appear on a leavers design, the names list is one of the most important parts of the project.
A spelling mistake becomes much more significant once it forms part of a finished design.
Start with an authoritative list
Where school policy permits, use an appropriate up-to-date school record as the basis of the list rather than asking somebody to type every pupil's name from memory.
Then establish whether the design should use:
first names;
first name and surname;
preferred names;
another agreed format.
The organiser should also check:
spelling;
missing pupils;
duplicate names;
pupils who should no longer appear;
recent arrivals;
preferred names;
staff names, if staff are being included.
Let pupils check their own names
Where appropriate, give pupils or families an opportunity to verify how the name will appear before the list becomes final.
A pupil who normally uses a shortened version of their formal first name may immediately spot something the organiser would have no reason to question.
Take particular care with nicknames
Do not assume that a familiar classroom nickname is suitable for permanent for a school leavers hoodie.
Anything appearing on a school-associated design should be checked for appropriateness and approved under the school's normal expectations.
Get school approval
Establish who has authority to approve the project before allowing pupils to make final choices.
Depending on how your school operates, approval might be required from a headteacher, senior leader, business manager or another nominated member of staff.
Things worth agreeing include:
the type of garment;
permitted colours;
use of the school's name;
use of the logo or crest;
the overall design;
whether pupil names will appear;
acceptable personalisation;
communications being sent to families.
Getting approval early is particularly important if pupils are being invited to vote on designs or colours. There is little value in asking pupils to choose between options that the school might subsequently reject.
Consider data handling as part of the plan
A leavers project can involve pupil names, sizes and other information. Follow your school's own data-protection procedures and use approved methods for collecting and storing pupil information.
The organiser should also consider whether every piece of information being requested is actually necessary for organising the clothing.
Communicate clearly with parents and pupils
A good leavers hoodie message tells families what is happening, what they need to decide and when they need to respond.
Keep the key information together rather than sending essential details across a succession of unrelated emails.
An initial communication might include:
who the clothing is for;
the chosen garment;
available colours;
the agreed design or design concept;
personalisation options;
how names will be displayed;
where to check sizing information;
what information parents or pupils need to provide;
the school's response deadline;
who to contact with a question.
We are more than happy to help create promotional tools to help. We can create letters to be sent home to parents, create leaflets with the shop information and print posters to be put around the school as a reminder.
Make deadlines unmistakable
Give a specific date rather than phrases such as "as soon as possible".
If you plan to send a reminder before the deadline, put that into your organiser timetable from the beginning.