It's the annual event guaranteed to stress out parents, but now some teachers are hitting back and bringing an end to dressing up for World Book Day.

World Book Day (on March 7) began in 1995 and was adopted in the UK in 1997, as reported by The Sunday Times.

Since then, primary schools across the UK have encouraged children to go into school dressed as a character from a book. And parents have been feeling the pressure to make or buy something special.

In recent years, supermarkets have cashed in on the big day, with an array of costumes from Alice in Wonderland to Paddington Bear, not to mention the usual superheroes and Disney princesses.

John Lewis is selling a Paddington costume for £32 and a Willy Wonka costume for £25, while Asda has a Hermione outfit for £17 and a Fantastic Mr Fox for £18.

Now hundreds of schools are telling parents not to buy or make costumes for their children, due to the cost and waste. Outfits are often worn once, then discarded, contributing to the environmental impact of fast fashion.

Instead, headteachers are encouraging children to take in books from home to share or swap and to wear comfy clothes to sit and enjoy their books.

The World Book Day website says: "World Book Day changes lives through a love of books and reading.

"Our mission is to promote reading for pleasure, offering every child and young person the opportunity to have a book of their own. Reading for pleasure is the single biggest indicator of a child's future success - more than their family circumstances, their parents' educational background or their income. We want to see more children, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds, with a life-long habit of reading for pleasure and the improved life chances this brings them."

The website continues: "Dressing up is an effective way to encourage children (particularly reluctant readers) to engage with reading. It can help children to express their personal reading choices and share reading recommendations. Children being dressed up also changes the learning environment to one which is more playful."

It also includes alternative suggestions for schools or families who don't feel dressing up is working for them.