My son MUST have HAIR CUT for secondary school!

Actually on her post on the vegan thread she did say her son was 13 and of course incredibly gifted!

Why should little boys go round looking like little girls? Life is confusing enough as it is.
You're right, it is confusing for a small number of people of extremely limited intellect. Perhaps if you could find someone to explain it to you; a small child would probably be able to help you with that.

Or advanced search even.

FrancisCrawford Have you not heard of advance search?

Doesn't sound like OP is in Scotland as the son is 13 and secondary school starts at 11 / 12 years old.

So, either somewhere with middle / upper secondary schools, or a private school.

The school my DD attends have very relaxed rules on hair and are sensible on uniform - hair has to be tied back for certain subjects and can only be dyed colours that occur in nature, so no blue, green, purple etc. Painted nails are allowed, jewellery has to be minimal. Uniform is worded so as not to be gender-specific and yes, some boys did turn up in skirts this summer term just gone when it was hot. No-one batted an eyelid, school is looking at introducing a shorts option if it's wanted.

It's a good school with good behaviour and good results despite a very mixed catchment with some areas of very high deprivation and crime. Common sense works.

And yes, there are many countries in Europe which do better than the UK re educational outcomes and don't have uniforms. It's a shame so many schools prioritise style over substance.

DS' school had a problem with drugs. Everyone knows about it. Very very smartly dressed pupils though. School is very strict about wearing blazers. Strange priorities IMO

Exactly.

Our catchment secondary is shit. It always was shit they rebuilt the Damn think changed the head changed the uniform etc.

It still achieved shit exam results. Uniforms are just polishing a turd half the time. Sort out the real issues

Anyone else wondering if the op is currently at the barbers?

DS' school had a problem with drugs. Everyone knows about it. Very very smartly dressed pupils though. School is very strict about wearing blazers. Strange priorities IMO

But why should the school feel "entitled" to dictate hairstyles? It has zero to do with education and if anyone has a problem with longer than collar hair then they would benefit from more education.

I know a boy with very long hair who got all As, plays in the school orchestra, his supportive parents are on school committees they're fantastic fundraisers; they're slightly unconventional. They all have gorgeous long hair. What an asset to that school that family is.

It seems that a lot of assumptions are made about boys who don't have short hair.

I do agree with you about trousers for girls, in the winter. My high school did allow this after the girls in the higher grades took them on about it, but when ever I walk pass my old school now, I am shocked by the way the girls, in particular, are dressed. We were always told we were an advert, if you like, for our school, and our behaviour in our school uniform was a reflection on the school & it's standards. This family are being set up for a fall if this sense of entitlement continues...

I don't think she is being ridiculous actually (and this is coming from someone who doesn't much like long hair on boys - yes I accept I am probably conditioned to think this).

It's exactly the same as not allowing girls to wear trousers in my opinion.

If girls are allowed hair past their collars then so should boys. End of.

So much time wasted in this country enforcing ludicrously specific dress codes. Doesn't seem to make our education system vastly superior to other EU countries mostly with no uniform at all.

She is away fighting with the school I bet! What a ridiculous carry on over his hair, make a stand over more important things, not hair which he can grow back later on!

usual I'm wondering why the OP hasn't commented further too.....

Tinkly, dint worry, these things are always varying from person to person. Mine is from a rellie. Some people just don't believe in converting at all, whole other thread. But these are exemptions op should look at.

Lorelei my knowledge of Sikhism is gained from DS's Sikh girlfriend (we are not Sikhs) who seems pretty convinced it is not something a person can convert to. Apologies if I am wrong.

mmmm OP hasn't come back!

I don't get why people think cutting hair is no big deal. I think it is traumatic. Give me the dentist any day of the week

It sounds like you have a non conformist child in a very traditional school. Doesn't sound like a great fit to me. I'm sure this is only the first of many issues you'll have.
Can I ask why you chose it?
If you're in an area without any choice then I would challenge it. But if you had other options and choose this one then I don't think you can complain really.

Fair point SoupDragon - I've just looked up the uniforms of three secondary schools nearby, and they are clearly very different - one says merely hair colour should be natural and accessories of modest size, and long hair tied back; another specifies boys' hair needs to be "Hair length must be a similar length all over the head, crown and sides. Hair length should be no longer than 2 inches (5cm). There should be no distinct difference in length of hair at the top or side of the head for fashionable styles. Students face must be clean shaven." - no mention of exemptions for Sikhs but it's a Catholic school which probably doesn't have any. No idea whether Afro hair is measured at rest or extended... This school also enforces skirts for girls and bans cycling shorts under!
The third school was in between.

I suppose I'll be doing a lot of reading in the next few years, given there's about 50 potential schools and I'm not going to more than 20 open days... It's a bit of a contrast to our primary where not many parents had looked at the school beforehand, and the attitude to uniform is "you bring the child, we'll provide a jumper and not worry about the rest, let us know if you can't afford it" If the kid's hair doesn't have nits, that'll do nicely (a couple boys do have long hair in a pony tail or plait).

Just5mins Given at least a third of kids at my ds's primary don't have internet access and many parents just apply to a couple schools they've heard of, there's going to be many surprised by uniform codes - though I suspect very expensive uniform and strict codes for bags and coats and hair is all part of selecting out such parents as much as possible.

All things considered, I'm not sure getting into a drawn-out conflict over something so relatively minor is the best idea as your son moves into secondary, OP. Technically, you're right and the rule is discriminatory. The reality is that almost all state maintained schools have similar rules of some sort or another (jewellery, trousers, skirt length, hair). If you follow this to its conclusion, you will be teaching your son to view his school as not being on his side, and it will probably affect his attainment in the long run. Just give him a hair cut!