THIS IS the week children head back to school after the long summer break and that means there's lots of last minute things to sort.

With the cost of basically everything going through the roof, parents are more concerned than ever with keeping their children's things in good nick so they don't need replacing.

Rather than nipping to the shops to get new lunch boxes and ruck sacks – these top tips will help you get them ship shape and good as new.

Cleaning whizz Becky, who writes Clean Mama blog, explained exactly how to blitz the bags to give them a fresh lease of life.

Start off by emptying the backpack and/or lunchbox completely and that means opening up the pockets and pouches and turning them inside out to remove fluffy and crumbs.

Next check the tags to be sure you can pop it into the washing machine and make sure you stick to the recommended temperature.

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Becky said: "I pre-treated a couple stained spots – my little guy has been using his backpack for fishing this summer and I didn’t wash it at the end of the school year."

Next put the machine on a gentle was with detergent and the cleaning pro suggested using the stain cycle so that the bag will have a bit of extra soaking time.

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Then she suggested leaving it to dry with all the pockets open.

Becky also explained that lunchboxes should be wiped out regularly with a non-toxic cleaner or a solution of half water and half white vinegar.

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She said: "This will keep the lunchbox clean and free from food spills and other lunch table germs.

"If your lunchbox is washable, you can launder it the same way you launder backpacks."

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