Dyspraxia clothing: easy-dress options for buttons, zips and laces

What counts as dyspraxia clothing?

Dyspraxia clothing is ordinary clothing with fastenings that need less finger precision: pull-on, step-in, elastic or rip-tape instead of small buttons, hooks and laces.

The NHS describes dyspraxia, also called developmental co-ordination disorder (DCD), as a condition that mainly affects movement, and lists tying shoelaces among the fine motor tasks that can be hard. Dressing can be delayed in young children, it adds. No garment changes the condition, and we do not claim any does. We are describing clothes that remove a step.

We have not tested any of the products below. Details come from each maker's page on 2 November 2026 where those pages opened.

What to look for in easy-dress clothing

• Fewer small fastenings. Look for pull-on waists, stretch necklines and open-ended zips. A zip with a large pull tab is easier to grip than a fine one.
• Rip-tape in place of buttons. M&S puts hidden rip-tape on its Easy Dressing school polos, so the top looks like a normal polo.
• Step-in shoes. Skechers says its Heel Pillow holds your heel after your foot slides in. Nike says the EasyOn heel collapses as you step in, then snaps back.
• A full opening. A zip that opens the whole shoe, as on the Billy high top, suits people who cannot judge where the heel goes.
• Stretch and size. A snug garment is harder to pull on than a slightly loose one. Order the size the chart gives, not smaller.

Dyspraxia clothing compared

Which shoes are easiest to put on?

The easiest shoes are the ones with a full opening, then step-in heels, then anything that needs tying.

Step-in trainers still need you to push your foot down and line up your heel, so try them before you rely on them. A zip-round shoe asks for one grip on the zip and nothing else. Our hands-free shoes guide goes through sizes, washing and children's versions.

What about school and work?

For school, ask the school what it allows before buying. M&S says its Easy Dressing collection includes pull-on elasticated-waist trousers, skirts and shorts and tops with hidden rip-tape. We checked the polo. The trousers page also says "button and zip fastening", so check the fastening on the pair you order.

For work, ordinary clothes are your own cost, but the NHS says adults can ask for reasonable adjustments and may get help through Access to Work. Our reasonable adjustments guide covers what to ask for.

Easy-dress clothing for children

For children, the simplest swap is a top with no buttons and trousers with an elastic waist, in a size the child can pull on alone.

The NHS says signs in young children can include delayed dressing, and that a definite diagnosis usually comes at about age 5, because children develop at different rates. If dressing is a daily fight, the NHS suggests talking to a GP, health visitor, school nurse or the school SENCO, who may refer a child to an occupational therapist. In the meantime, the M&S Easy Dressing polo is a low-cost test: it is from £4.50 for a pack of two, for ages 3 to 18, though only white when we looked. M&S says the range includes pull-on elasticated-waist trousers, skirts and shorts, so look in that section too.

If money is tight

Start with the cheapest swap, not the dearest. A pack of two M&S polos costs less than one pair of the Nike shoes. For shoes, no-tie elastic laces in a pair you already own cost a few pounds and keep the fit you know. Try them for a week before you spend £45 to £110 on new shoes. Skechers also sells children's and men's Slip-ins, so check the range if the women's style does not suit.

Things to know

• The NHS says an occupational therapist can help people find practical ways to do tasks at home. Ask your GP or, for a child, the school SENCO or health visitor.
• Elastic no-tie laces in shoes you already own are a cheap first test. We have not picked a brand.
• The Billy shoe listing and Skechers sizes came from our September check of Amazon UK, which we could not reopen on 2 November.
• Nike's EasyOn page we checked is women's sizing only.
• Check return windows before wearing anything outdoors. Try new shoes on carpet at home first, on the day you would actually use them, and practise putting them on and taking them off a few times, because the first attempt is rarely a fair test.
• Rip-tape and zips can wear or catch over time, and a washing machine can clog rip-tape with lint. Close the fastenings before washing and follow the care label (M&S says wash its polo at 40 degrees, delicate).
• We have not tested these products. Prices were right at the time of writing and move often.