School Leavers Hoodies 2027: Start Planning This Term

October 27, 2026

A leavers hoodie is the one thing every pupil keeps. It’s signed on the last day, worn on the school trip and dug out of a drawer years later.

It’s also a job with a lot of moving parts: names to collect, colours to agree, payments to chase and a hard deadline at the end of the year. Our view after years of school orders is simple: the schools that start in the autumn term have the easiest time. Start in May and it’s a scramble.

This guide gives you a month-by-month plan for school leavers hoodies in 2027, whether you’re organising them for Year 6, Year 11 or Year 13.

Quick answer: when should we order school leavers hoodies?

Agree the design in January, collect names and sizes in February, and sign off and pay by Friday 5 March 2027. Custom hoodies take around 5 to 6 weeks to make and deliver, so they reach you in April, before study leave and the summer term rush. With Decathlon Club, personalised hoodies start at £29.75 per pupil (excl. VAT), with your school crest and names included. The minimum first order is just 5 items.

Your leavers hoodie timeline for 2027

Work backwards from the day you want pupils wearing them. For most schools that’s late April or early May, so Year 11 and Year 13 have them before study leave and Year 6 have them for the summer term.

When	What to do
Autumn term (now to December)	Pick a lead: a teacher, the head of year or the PTA. Agree who pays and check your procurement rules.
January	Choose the design and colours. Run a pupil vote. Send us your crest as a vector file.
February (before half-term)	Collect names, nicknames and sizes. Approve every name. Open payments or your school shop.
By Friday 5 March 2027	Check the proof, sign it off and pay.
April	Hoodies are made and delivered, around 9 to 16 April if you sign off on 5 March.
May to July	Hand them out. Study leave, the last day, the leavers’ assembly: it’s hoodie season.

Easter Sunday is 28 March 2027. Check your term dates: if delivery would land in your Easter holidays, tell us and we’ll schedule it for when you’re back.

Year 6, Year 11 or Year 13: what changes?

Year 6 leavers hoodies

Parents usually pay, so a simple online payment route matters more than anything else.
Size up. Year 6 pupils grow fast, and most want to wear their hoodie into Year 7. Order one size bigger than they wear now.
First names only? Many primary schools leave surnames off for safeguarding reasons. Check your school’s policy before you collect names.
Make it a moment. Hand them out at the leavers’ assembly or on sports day.

Year 11 and Year 13 leavers hoodies

Get them in before study leave. Once exams start, pupils are rarely all in school at the same time.
Let the year group lead the design. A pupil committee choosing colours and the back design makes it feel like theirs.
Approve nicknames. Older pupils will want nicknames. Set a rule early: a member of staff signs off every name before it goes to print.
Think about the leavers’ trip or prom. A hoodie that arrives in April gets a lot more wear.

Designing personalised leavers hoodies

This is the fun part. Keep it simple and it’ll look great in every photo.

School crest on the front. Send a vector file (AI, EPS or SVG) for a sharp print. A JPG from the website will look blurry.
Every name on the back. The classic leavers design: the whole year group, often in the shape of “27” or a school landmark.
Individual names on the sleeve or back. A pupil’s own name or approved nickname makes it personal.
Pick colours that stand out. Bright colours look great in photos. If you want a clear link to the school, check they work with your school colours.
Add the year. “Leavers 2027” or “Class of 2027” is what makes it a keepsake.

Design it yourself in our Kit Designer, or send your ideas to our in-house design team. Either way, design is free.

Tip from our design team

“[QUOTE TO SOURCE: one practical design tip for leavers hoodies, such as how many names fit legibly on a back print. One or two sentences.]” [Name], [Role], Decathlon Club

Which hoodie should you choose?

There are two styles, so it’s worth knowing the difference before your pupils vote.

Style	What it’s like	Price per hoodie (excl. VAT)	Incl. VAT
Lightweight sublimated, no zip	Lightweight polyester with your design dyed into the fabric. No limit on colours, patterns or names.	£29.75	£35.70
Lightweight sublimated, full zip	As above, with a full-length zip.	£32.50	£39.00

Our pick for most leavers orders: the sublimated hoodie with no zip. It’s the lowest price, and because the design is dyed into the fabric, a full name list costs nothing extra and won’t crack, peel or fade, even after years in the wash.

Every hoodie comes in junior, men’s and women’s sizes and fits. Use our size guide and, if a pupil is between sizes, go for the bigger one.

Working out the cost per pupil

Our prices include the design, your school crest and names, so there are no set-up fees or surprise extras on the invoice.

Example order	Cost
30 pupils, sublimated hoodie, no zip	£892.50 excl. VAT (£1,071.00 incl. VAT)
Per pupil	£29.75 excl. VAT (£35.70 incl. VAT)

There are three common ways to pay for school leavers hoodies:

Parents pay through a school shop. We set up a free branded online shop for your school. Parents choose a size and pay online. No cash, no spreadsheets.
The school or PTA pays. One invoice, one order. Our invoices include everything a bursar needs as standard.
A mix of both. The PTA covers part of the cost and parents pay the rest, or a fund covers pupils who need support.

If cash collection is what you dread, choose the school shop. It takes payments off your desk entirely.

Collecting names and sizes without the chaos

Names are where most leavers hoodie orders go wrong. Five rules save a lot of trouble.

Use one form. A single online form for name, nickname and size, with a firm closing date.
Get spellings in writing. From the pupil or a parent, never from memory.
Approve every nickname. One member of staff checks the full list before it comes to us.
Don’t forget anyone. Check the list against your register, including pupils who joined late.
Check the proof line by line. Once you sign off, that’s what gets made. Hoodies are made to order, so they can’t be exchanged for a different size or name.

Why order through Decathlon Club?

Free design from our in-house team, or build it yourself in the Kit Designer.
Crest and names included in the price. No set-up fees.
Junior to adult sizes, so one order covers Year 6 to Year 13 and the staff.
A free school shop for parent payments, or one invoice for the bursar.
More than hoodies. The same team makes your custom school sports kit, so leavers kit can match your PE and team kit.

School leavers hoodies FAQs

When should we order school leavers hoodies?

Sign off your design and pay by Friday 5 March 2027. Custom hoodies take around 5 to 6 weeks to make and deliver, so that gets them to you in April, ready for the summer term.

How much do leavers hoodies cost?

Personalised hoodies from Decathlon Club start at £29.75 per pupil excluding VAT (£35.70 including VAT), with your school crest and names included.

Is there a minimum order?

Your first order has a minimum of 5 items. After that, there’s no minimum, so you can add late joiners or replacements whenever you need to.

Can we put every pupil’s name on the back?

Yes. A name list on the back is the classic leavers design. On a sublimated hoodie, the names are dyed into the fabric, so they won’t crack or peel.

Can parents pay individually?

Yes. We can set up a free online shop for your school, where parents choose a size and pay online.

What sizes are available for Year 6 leavers hoodies?

Junior, men’s and women’s sizes are all available. Year 6 pupils grow quickly, so we recommend ordering a size up.

Can we change a name after we’ve ordered?

Every hoodie is made to order, so check names carefully on the proof before you sign it off. We can’t exchange hoodies once they’re made.

Start planning your Class of 2027 hoodies

The schools with the best leavers hoodies aren’t the ones with the biggest budget. They’re the ones that started early. Pick a lead this term, get the design sorted in January, and you’ll have hoodies in April with time to spare.

Design your leavers hoodie

Free design, your crest and names included, and junior to adult sizes. Start in our Kit Designer or talk to our team.

DESIGN YOUR LEAVERS H OODIE | Get a free quote