AIBU to challenge the school’s wording about pupils rolling skirts up?

Told me the pupils behaviour is exemplary 🤷. Wasn’t what I complained about

humans should dress how they want

But humans can't dress how they want. There are many circumstances where what you wear is dictated by health and safety requirements, whether that's working in a hospital or on a building site or climbing in the Scottish Highlands. Or because of standards of public decency. Or because workplaces, restaurants etc are at liberty to set their own dress codes. Or because stately homes can ban stiletto heels because of the damage caused to flooring. Or simply because your mother wants you to take your muddy boots off before you enter the house and take off your greasy overalls before you sit on her sofa.

There are few good reason to not walk about with your bum hanging out, including offending members of the public to the extent that they call the school to complain!

I think you'll find that's their primary concern.

But it still looks awful!

I would assume they mean that it's not a 'good idea' as it violates their uniform policy and will lead to behaviour sanctions?

Maybe it's common for students to roll up their skirts when traveling then forget to make them an appropriate length when they get to school?

Criminal elements exist, end of story. Pretending they don't to act like we live in some perfect world is silly.

And fault is a loaded term. You still have personal responsibility for our own safety, we all do. If you don't want to accept that, go for it. But teach children it, and let them decide when they are an adult if they want to stupidly ignore it as well not before then.

At the secondary i work at the girls have to wear opaque tights which means if they do roll them you cant see anything .

The school were being pro-feminist - they were looking after their young women and girls by setting examples of appropriate attire. The OP thinks the newsletter was sexist to address this, I disagree - they’re looking out for all students.

Clothing (or lack of) should never be an excuse to assault a woman - but it still happens - so that’s why the newsletter says ‘it’s not a good idea’ it would never be the victims fault if an abuser attacked them because they wore a short skirt - but the fa t remains - there are sickos out there that still will and the school are right to say ‘it’s not a good idea’

it’s also not pleasant to see anyone’s underwear - in sick of seeing young girls (and women, but children as young as 7-8 also) on holiday wearing thong bikinis - horrid!

How do you word your complaint? How does the school respond?

I’ve complained to my local school several times about the ultra short skirts. Some of the girls knickers are on display - I draw the line at that. I do not want to see a 14 year girls knickers on display

short skirts - as long as they’d be a length acceptable in the work place I’m fine with. I don’t expect skirts to be 1” above the knee which was the bizarre rule at my all girls state school! But when they’re walking along the road with their knickers on display - no

It's nothing to do with what women and girls should be able to wear without being attacked; it's about people knowing what is acceptable in public and not flashing at people who don't want to be flashed at.

The standard applies to both sexes - it's just that boys (and indeed men, apart from the obvious perverts) don't routinely dress in such a way that they are flashing other people in public.

How can it possibly be pro-feminist for a teenage girl to dress in such a way that a female teacher (or a male one, for that matter) is forced to look at her private body parts against her will? Or otherwise have to seriously restrict where she looks all day whilst at work because of that teenage girl's deliberate choices?

How is it sexist - it’s pro- feminist.

humans should dress how they want and not be attacked based on what they wear but they can’t in school as there’s a policy. Why is there a policy? Because despite it being no excuse to attack a woman or a child, people still do!

Our school is trousers only. I think it's a great idea, I hated skirts as a kid. (I don't have girls).

Yes, this. There are plenty of perfectly acceptable skirts and trousers out there. If they refuse to comply with one of them, why will they with the other - and why woukd you let them get away with one of them but not with the other?

Well ... Writing "so they don't look like utter Muppets" would be frowned upon.

It's kind of ironic, and rather depressing, that after all the efforts by women (led by Gina Martin) to have upskirting made a criminal offence these stupid girls are now actually helping voyeurs to avoid prosecution.

The legal definition of upskirting is defined in the Voyeurism (Offences) Act 2019, s 67a (1), which states that "a person commits an offence if they operate equipment beneath the clothing of another person (without that person’s consent or a reasonable belief in their consent), with the intention of enabling themselves or another person to observe the person’s genitals, buttocks or underwear in circumstances where they would otherwise not be visible, and this is done for sexual gratification ..."

But because of the way these girls are dressing, the voyeurs no longer have to operate "equipment" (i.e. a camera / video) beneath the clothing - they can get away with committing what would normally be a criminal offence thanks entirely to the active collusion of the girls!

Or any child!

I wonder how the girls would react if they got what they wanted and started getting commented on? Especially by their male classmates

It's because many, many girls roll their skirts so high you can literally see their bums.
Everyone absolutely should be able to wear whatever they like, but appropriate. Their arse should not be on full show on a teenage child in a school.

The girls around my area do it and they roll them up so high you can see their arse cheeks. It feels very icky because it smacks of desperation. They’re clearly not doing it for their own benefit.

In order to 'level' the pupils they make parents buy things at designer prices though. How does that help? The only item that doesn't need to have the school logo on is the trousers. The tops, jumpers, skirts, coats, 2 types of PE kit including socks all have to be the official expensive school version. We spend hundreds of pounds on it, so it might as well be from Hollister.

No need for all the personal comments from some posters.
I'd say it was an unusual choice of words, but I think it's a bit of a stretch to say that they're basically victim blaming. I think the word they were looking for was "inappropriate", which it is because school hold certain standards of dress code.
I view it that, when out and about in public it's generally accepted here that men can have their tops off. If they were go to work/school without a top, it would be inappropriate. In their free time, girls can dress how they want, but parents should be helping to teach them about dressing appropriately for the situation.

I remember choosing to wear a tie when they said we didn't have to 😆sticking it to the man 🤘

In that case… I’d agree

challenging the school over this? Yep, falls in to that category

It can unfortunately make them
more vulnerable, not victim blaming anyone here. They can get verbally harassed for having their skirt shorter on the way to school. Tbf some skirts are rolled up like a belt.