A school bag and lunch bag are two of the few things a child uses, without fail, every single school day for months at a stretch — which makes them worth choosing carefully, even though it's tempting to grab whatever's cheapest and colourful in the shop. Here's what we'd actually check before buying, based on the kids' backpacks and lunch bags in our Kids & Family range.

Size The Bag To The Child, Not The Contents

The most common mistake with a preschool or early-school backpack is buying one sized for "everything they might need" rather than for the child's own frame. An oversized bag looks practical in the shop but becomes genuinely uncomfortable on a small back over a full school day, and can affect posture over time. For preschoolers and toddlers specifically, look for a bag with a spacious-but-not-huge main compartment, adjustable padded straps that can be tightened as they grow, and — this matters more than it sounds — a sturdy top handle, since an adult will be the one actually carrying or hanging the bag most of the time at drop-off and pickup.

Water-Resistance Isn't A Nice-To-Have

Kids' bags end up on wet ground, in rain, and next to spilled water bottles far more often than adult bags do. A durable, water-resistant material is the single most practical spec on a kids' backpack, well ahead of exact colour or print — it's the difference between a wet patch that wipes off and a soaked-through bag that ruins books or a packed lunch.

Let The Design Do Some Of The Work

Kids genuinely engage more with a bag they like the look of — it's a small thing, but a backpack in a design they're excited about tends to get picked up and packed with less daily friction than a plain one. Character and pattern designs — a rainbow, a rocket, a cloud print — work well for exactly this reason, and having more than one design to choose from means the child gets a say, which matters more for younger kids than adults usually expect.

Lunch Bags: Insulation Is The One Spec That Matters

A lunch bag's entire job is keeping food at a safe, appetising temperature for several hours in a bag that also gets tossed around, sat on, and stuffed into a backpack pocket. A padded, insulated lining is non-negotiable — a plain fabric tote without insulation will leave lunch lukewarm or worse by midday. Beyond that, look for sturdy carry handles (so it survives being picked up by the handle repeatedly, which is exactly how kids carry things) and an easy-wipe interior, since spills are a when, not an if. A friendly cartoon face design — a duck, a bear, a cat — tends to get a lunch bag actually used and looked after, rather than left crumpled at the bottom of a backpack.

One Bag, Or Two?

For most families, a separate lunch bag rather than a lunch box crammed into the main backpack compartment works better on two counts: it keeps food smells and any spills away from books and stationery, and it means the lunch bag alone can go in the wash or get a quick wipe-down without emptying the entire backpack. If your child's school has a separate lunch break structure where the lunch bag is pulled out and left at a desk or in a cubby, this separation matters even more.

How Long Should A School Bag Actually Last?

Set realistic expectations here: a well-made preschool or early-school backpack should comfortably survive a full school year of daily use, including drops, spills and being dragged across playgrounds — but a growing child will usually outgrow the *size* before the bag itself wears out. That's worth knowing before you buy, because it means the smarter move for younger kids is often a mid-range bag replaced as they grow, rather than a single expensive one meant to last several years. Check stitching at the strap attachment points and the base of the bag when it arrives — those are the two spots that take the most repeated stress and the first place any bag will show wear.

Getting Kids To Actually Pack Their Own Bag

A backpack and lunch bag your child likes the look of does more than make them happy in the shop — it makes them more willing to take ownership of packing and carrying it themselves, which is a genuinely useful habit to build early. A simple system helps: one main compartment for books (so nothing else competes for that space), and the lunch bag always going in the same spot — a side pocket if the backpack has one, or clipped to the outside — so there's no daily "wait, where's my lunch" moment at the door.

Common Questions

Is a rainbow or character-print backpack "too babyish" as kids get a little older? For preschool and early primary years, character and pattern prints are genuinely age-appropriate and tend to be exactly what that age group wants — the "too babyish" concern usually kicks in later, around upper primary, which is a different sizing and style bracket than what's covered here. How do I clean a spill on an insulated lunch bag without damaging the insulation? Wipe the interior lining with a damp cloth and mild soap rather than submerging or machine-washing the whole bag — insulated linings are designed to wipe clean, and soaking can affect the insulating layer over repeated washes. Should the lunch bag match the backpack? Not necessary at all — many kids actually prefer picking two different designs they like independently, and there's no functional reason they need to match; let the child choose each on its own merit.

A Simple Buying Checklist

Before buying, we'd check: does the backpack size suit the child's frame, not just their school-supply list? Is the material water-resistant? Does the child actually like the design, or did you pick it for them? Is the lunch bag genuinely insulated, not just a printed fabric tote? And are the straps and handles sturdy enough to survive being pulled, dropped and dragged, because they will be.

Browse the full range in Kids & Family, or message us on WhatsApp if you'd like a recommendation for a specific age group.