Advertisement feature
Why are a child’s first shoes so important? We discover the secrets of looking after your little one’s feet with footwear experts, Start-Rite Shoes.
The proper footwear is crucial for your child, as ill-fitting shoes can really impact on their physical development – and not just on their feet, but their movement, walking pattern, and even knee and back issues.
If your child has poorly fitting shoes, not only will they be uncomfortable straight away and likely too young to tell you exactly what’s wrong, but their walking pattern can be affected for the rest of their lives. Your little one’s brain will compensate for their movement issues, and could result in knee and spine problems.
Your little one’s gait – their walking pattern – will continue to develop right up until they’re 16 years old, so it’s vital their footwear is suitable and properly fitted right from the start.
How children’s feet develop
In the first four years of your child’s life, their feet develop from soft and pliable as pre-walkers, through to weight-bearing strength as they take their first steps, then continuing to develop bones and ligaments. The foot’s ligaments are all still developing at age four, and the feet continue to develop until the age of 16. All these changes make having well-fitting shoes more important.
We’re born with fewer bones in our feet than when we start school; we start at birth with 22 soft cartilage bones, then by school age we’ve developed up to 45 bones. By the age of 16, those bones have continued to fuse together, forming 26 foot bones in total. Having the right footwear affects how these bones develop.
Before the age of four, our children’s feet haven’t yet developed the important arch; the important ‘subtalar joint’ is still developing, which allows our feet to flatten and roll as we bear weight. Between the ages of four and six, fat pads on the underneath of the feet start to disappear as the arch emerges; this makes our little ones change from stomping around to walking more like an adult. With badly fitting shoes, or footwear that’s too stiff, toes can’t move properly and can cause the foot to roll, and even hurt the knees and back.
When should you get their first pair of shoes?
When your little one starts walking unaided outside, that’s a good time to introduce their first pair of shoes, starting with a soft pre-walking shoe that’s super flexible, comfortable with a wide toe box and adjustable fastenings.
What makes Start-Rite First Steps Shoes different?
Start-Rite Shoes have been fitting footwear for more than 230 years, innovating with new technology to continue supporting little ones’ foot development. Its shoes are designed with movement and flexibility in mind, continuously testing and developing to ensure children’s feet are protected and given the freedom to develop naturally.
Start-Rite’s First Steps shoes allow tots’ feet to be supported while taking in the sensory feedback from the ground underneath them – which is so important to how a child balances and starts to walk. They are specifically shaped for a child's foot – they’re not just a shrunken-down adult-shoe design.
They feature secure, super-strong fastenings for ease and control, and are made using high-quality, soft leather for comfort and durability.
Start-Rite shoes also feature padded ankle support and cushioned insoles, with ultra-flexible lightweight soles for natural movement. They have scuff-proof heel and toe bumpers for extra protection as your little one runs, hops, and jumps through their adventures.
What shoes should be avoided for children?
Start-Rite Shoes advises against buying mini adult shoes, or adult-style trainers, as favouring fashion over functionality can be damaging to your child’s foot development. Fundamentally adults have different shape feet to children, so adult-style shoes aren’t the right shape to support little feet. Fashion trainers also tend to have harder soles, which can damage the foot cartilage; first walking shoes in particular need to have flexible soles that allow for natural movement.