Was This Headmaster In The Right To Enforce Such Strict Uniform Policy?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3775968/Police-called-school-sends-FIFTY-children-home-day-term-weren-t-wearing-right-uniform.html

/// 'One of Aleasha's friends was turned away for wearing canvas shoes, and she was hysterical. ///

/// 'As soon as Aleasha saw that, she was scared she wouldn't be allowed in. ///

/// 'She's been really stressed for the past three nights and now she's terrified of going to
school. ///

Oh dear what is the matter with kids and their parents these days?

[mikey4444]

Barmaid..... " I am not sure why there is so much of a fuss"

This is the DM........Its what the newspaper does for a living...skewed reporting is its speciality.

[Barmaid]

Yeah OK Mikey. My specialist subject for today is the "bleeding obvious". lol

[Old_Geezer]

If there is a uniform it should be adhered to.
There should not be a uniform.

It is an outdated requirement. Has only excuses not reasons trying to justify it. As long as there is a code giving a guide to acceptable dress the actual choice of clothing is the right if the individual.

[agchristie]

I wonder if nails, ears and haircuts were inspected too?

[mikey4444]

Barmaid....lol indeed !

[Cloverjo]

I remember girls wearing skimpy shorts instead of a skirt or trousers as uniform at my school, and me wearing a long tight skirt or a skirt hitched up as far as I could.

In London recently I was in a museum where a secondary school was having a field trip. The girls were all wearing skirts that barely covered their bums. There needs to be standards. I think the OP was about footwear [sorry I couldn't access the link] particularly, but you have to start somewhere.

[fiction-factory]

I am not totally against abolishing uniforms, Old_Geezer. Sixth forms work well without uniforms and on non-uniform days I feel there is a better atmosphere in school. But there would still need to be a dress code- eg no see through blouses/crop tops, no flip flops, no offensive T shirts, etc

[Cloverjo]

I prefer schools to have a uniform. No worrying about what to wear, as long as it's easily affordable. You can get grey skirts or trousers and white shirts anywhere. It's a problem if the school has an unusual colour requirement or something that has to be bought in a particular shop.

There was a mum at my son's primary school who insisted that her son wear jeans because he wore out the knees so quickly in regular trousers. He was allowed to wear jeans.

[TWR]

I think if the pupil is well groomed, clean with a good standard of dress why have strict rules on a uniform that is used from 9am>>3pm 5 days a week, with money the way it is with some families, food in the belly is more important that Uniform Rules.

[mikey4444]

OG...I can't agree with you over school uniforms I'm afraid.

If you don't have an agreed standard, then its impossible to define and control what is acceptable and what isn't. The easiest way to proceed is to have a uniform, then everybody knows where they stand.

I went to a very good Secondary Modern School in the 60's and we were as well turned out as the Grammar School kids.

But all this is missing the point. The school went to great lengths to make everybody aware of the policy and the vast majority parents complied. It was only a small minority that didn't, and most of those attended later in the day, correctly turned out.

Storm in a teacup, if ever there was.

[agchristie]

Fortunately,the wisdom of good dress and appearance improves over time.I mean,just watch University Challenge!!

Uncut hair,hats,long unkempt beards - it's all there!

[cassa333]

Once again it is righteous indignation from ban her parents unable to follow information given to them. Interpreting the rules as they see fit.

I got my daughter new school trousers and she refused to wear them because they were the wrong sort and she didn't want to get into trouble. I got her another pair that met the criteria. Not so difficult.

This does however remind me of the mostly mothers stuffing burgers through the school fence rather than have their precious little darlings have to eat anything healthy.

[chrissa1]

He was absolutely right. A school uniform is, what it, is.

[TWR]

I've noticed the School Uniform is more important the pupils safety here at this school, if you look at one of the Images some bright Spark has put in a drop off parking just behind the Hazard lines at the school gate, what is one of the first things pupils want to do when class finishes? get out of the place and straight across the road, any thought on this?

[Cloverjo]

Cassa, I'm just wondering why your daughter said they were the wrong sort. Were they not trendy enough, or not school uniformish enough?

[anotheoldgit]

/// All this talk about the Gestapo is ruddy nonsense, and the media should hang their heads in shame. ///

Don't blame it on the media mikey, the 'Gestapo' accusation was made by this parent.

*** Miss King, who has complained to Ofsted, added: 'The issue isn't the uniform, because I totally agree with it. The problem is that he handled it like a Gestapo.' ***

But if she needs to make such a comparison she should first know what the Gestapo actually was, it wasn't just a person (as she stated when she put "like a Gestapo") but a whole group of people who made up the Nazi Secret State Police.

[ludwig]

He's right to enforce a strict policy.
His methods may be questionable, but it's difficult to know because the tabloids never let the truth get in the way of a good story.

However, If the both the rules and the consequences of not adhering to them were made clear well in advance, I don't see that the parents or children have got anything to complain about.

[agchristie]

I thought that AOG re:reference to 'a Gestapo'.God knows what Miss King would think of Mr Stazi..

[woofgang]

TWR, one parent stated that the non uniform trainers she had purchased were 220 quid a pair....no lack of money there then......

[anotheoldgit]

TWR

/// with money the way it is with some families, food in the belly is more important that Uniform Rules. ///

It would seem TWR that money is no object for some parents, could it be that is the reason why a uniform policy makes everyone equal, and we don't have all this "my trainers are better than yours" malarkey?


*** Another parent claimed that her son and daughter were refused entry because of their black Nike Air Max 95 trainers, which she had spent £220 on because they were allowed to wear them last year at the school. ***