Nothing quite screams summer like investing in a new pair of sunglasses. But it’s not just adults who need to consider their eyewear. Before your children go running out the door, make sure they’re armed with a pair of sunglasses.
While we want to encourage children to embrace the great outdoors, akin to the importance of sun cream, eye safety is paramount. “Even on cloudy days, our children’s eyes can be exposed to UV radiation,” explains Giles Edmonds, Specsavers clinical services director. UVA rays can pass through the eye’s cornea and reach the lens and retina, and while UVB rays can’t pass through glass or plastic, they can still cause eye damage. And sunglasses are here to help with lenses absorbing the visible light aimed at the eyes offering protection.
Without getting deeply technical, sunglasses protection levels vary, so are divided up into so-called filter categories. Category three lenses provide UV protection of up to the 400-nanometre wavelength, the top end of the UV spectrum. So when purchasing a pair of sunglasses for your child look out for category 3 or UV400 markings.
“For the best protection from the sun’s ultraviolet rays, a relatively large yet close-fitting frame is the best design for children’s sunglasses,” suggests Edmonds. “Make sure they cover a good portion of the eyes and look for durable features such as flexible hinges.”
Fortunately, style doesn’t have to be compromised. There’s a whole range of shades that not only protect young peepers, but are the perfect accessory to summer attire.
How we tested
With the British weather playing ball and an enthusiastic trio of children (a three, six and 12-year-old) to help put a range of sunglasses through the mill, we headed out in to the great outdoors to chase the sun.
All of the sunglasses we tested comply with UV400 protection, but comfort was key. It can be difficult to keep sunglasses on little faces because their noses aren’t fully formed yet and don’t have bridges, so we took a close look at the shape of the sunglasses and how flexible the frames were to suit different face sizes.
We also considered the lenses. While ordinary lenses darken the view, polarizing ones block irritating glares so this feature scored highly, but we also wanted the sunglasses to appeal to the kids wearing them, so style was highly regarded too. These are the ones that shone brightest.
The best kids’ sunglasses for 2022 are:
- Best overall – Roald Dahl Charlie and the Chocolate Factory children’s sunglasses: £20, Visionexpress.com
- Best for flexibility –Bora: £25, Suneez.com
- Best for luxury – Ray-Ban juniors RJ 9064S (152/13) children’s sunglasses: £77, Visionexpress.com
- Best for guarantee – Babiators original keyhole sunglasses - black ops black: £24, Naturalbabyshower.co.uk
- Best for toddlers –IZIPIZI sunglasses kids - lemonade: £26.95, Scandiborn.co.uk
- Best for retro style –Koko Blossom kids sunglasses: £12.50, Kokoblossom.co.uk
- Best for added extras – The Scout kids sunglasses: £30, Littlehotdogwatson.com
- Best for fun print –Konges sløjd print sunglasses: £18, Kidly.co.uk
- Best for unisex – Polarn O. Pyret kids UV polarized sunglasses: £20, Polarnopyret.co.uk
- Best for fashion – Myleene Klass clear preppy sunglasses: £4, Next.co.uk
- Best for budget buy – Black & Milks polarized sunglasses: £12, Bladeandrose.co.uk
- Best for a secure fit – JoJo Maman Bebe kids’ flexible sunglasses with straps: £11.20, Jojomamanbebe.co.uk