What NOT to Put on Little Feet This Summer

Whoop, whoop, here comes the sun 🌞🌞🌞 But every year when it shows it's face it's accompanied by a far less welcome sight... flip-flops and Crocs 😬

And we get it, they're cheap, easy to slip on and off and your child will absolutely beg for a pair in their favourite colour. But before they become the go-to shoe for every hot day this summer, here's what we want every parent to know first.

The trouble with flip-flops (and similar slip-on sandals)

Flip-flops and sliders have their place, quick trips to and around the pool, a five minute stroll to the beach, but they're not designed for hours of everyday wear.

Because they're not attached to the foot in any secure way, your child's toes have to grip and curl just to keep the shoe on with every step. Do that for any length of time and it will strain the muscles, potentially affecting muscular development and resulting in hammer toes. Flip flops also change the way your child naturally walks. Add in minimal shock absorbancy, no heel support and nothing protecting the sides or front of the foot, and you've got a shoe that struggles to keep up with how children actually move: running, climbing, jumping, stopping suddenly to inspect a snail... and don't get me started on scooting, my heart is in my mouth every time I see it.

The same goes for Crocs and similar clogs: brilliant for the beach or the splash pool, but their loose fit and rigid sole really aren't built for all-day wear or covering any real distance.

Little feet feel the heat differently to ours

There's another summer risk that's easy to miss: hot surfaces. Pavements, decking, fake grass, playground equipment and sand can all heat up far more than feels obvious to an adult, and children's feet are more vulnerable to this than ours. The skin on the soles of little feet has yet to toughen up with years of walking and exposure, so a surface that feels uncomfortably warm to you can be genuinely painful, or even cause a burn, much faster for your child.

A simple test: if a surface feels too hot for your hand after a few seconds, it's too hot for bare little feet too. It's one more reason a proper sandal, rather than bare feet or something flimsy, matters on hot days out.

Feet swell in the heat too

This catches a lot of us out, not just little ones. Feet, whatever your age, can swell slightly in hot weather, as the body sends extra blood flow to the skin's surface to help cool down. For children, this can mean a pair of shoes or sandals that fitted perfectly yesterday suddenly feel tight, restrictive or start rubbing, even though nothing's "changed" except the temperature.

It's worth double checking the fit as temperatures rise, rather than assuming they will still be comfortable in the heat. A sandal with some adjustability, a buckle or strap rather than a fixed slip-on shape, makes it much easier to get a comfortable fit that can flex with the day, and the season.

So what should you look for?

A good summer sandal should hold the foot securely without restricting how it moves. A few things worth checking:

• A secure fastening — a buckle, strap or adjustable closure that keeps the foot from sliding around, so there's no need for toes to grip to hold the sandal on.

• A sole that flexes — stiff, rigid soles work against natural foot movement, but the sole still needs enough structure to protect against hot or hard ground.

• Breathable materials — leather, canvas and other natural materials let air circulate and moisture escape, rather than trapping heat and sweat the way plastic and synthetic shoes do.

• Room to grow and adjust — enough space for toes to spread, and enough adjustability to cope with a bit of natural summer swelling.

Closed-toe or open-toe?

A question we get asked all the time as summer approaches and it really depends on age and how active your child is. For toddlers and busier children, we tend to recommend closed-toe sandals, they protect against scrapes, trips and stubbed toes, and tend to hold the foot more securely overall. Open-toe styles work well for older, steadier children, just make sure there's no more than 0.5cm of growing room at the front.

So to conclude...

There may be a time and a place for flip-flops and Crocs, they're just not built for the job we often ask them to do. For short bursts, they unlikely to cause harm, but for the rest of summer's running, climbing and exploring, little feet do better in something that holds on properly, flexes with movement, breathes and has a little give for warm-weather swelling.

If you're not sure whether your child's sandals are still doing their job as it gets hotter, that's exactly what we're here for. Book a fitting or drop us a message, we're here to make it easy.

Find your nearest CeCe & Me shoe fitter