EssJay1, I'm sorry but your response is absolutely typical of many teachers and exactly the sort of response that we are all talking about.
"While a replacement uniform is bought?"
We were fortunate not to be too badly off, but have you even the vaguest idea of the percentage of weekly income it would cost a single parent on benefits to replace items of uniform STOLEN.Not lost, STOLEN?
We told the school ( since they were aware who took it and it WAS named) that since they were so smug and complacant they could replace it, alternatively our children would wear what we deemed fit. Predictably they adopted their customary high handed attitude so we removed the children from school as frankly we were sick of the absolute ignorance that teaching staff showed about the situation.
You are paid to educate our children, absolutely, but education does not stop with lessons, you educate by example and by the manner in which you choose to interact with parents and their children and address problems facing those children. If on occasions that involved you helping a child whose uniform has been stolen then YES for those few moments you DO have to be a cloakroom attendant, it's part of being a teacher. People are heartily sick of being spoken down to regarding the lack of courtesy shown to them by schools where they or their child have been the victim of theft and JudgeJ is right, it's time that more parents took the matter to the police and out of the hands of teachers who think they can just lord it over the rest of us, discount the feelings of the bullied and by doing so give out the messge that this sort of behaviour is tolerated and acceptable.