Uniform is supposed to equal the DC out......but of course it doesn't

[JoceHark]

At DC's school everyone knows who has money and who doesn't. First it was the designer coats, the school then cracked down and said no brand names on coats.

Then the bags.

Now it's the belts. Kids wearing designer logo'd belts to school (no current ban in place).

Also a bizarre rule which says girls can wear one single ring (plain) and boys can wear a signet ring. Firstly I know plenty of women who still wear a signet ring (seems sexist that only boys can at school), but the signet rings they are wearing are bling'd to all hell and back.

Should we just accept that school uniform is actually a load of bollocks.

It doesn't prepare them for work, how many office staff do you know who wear a tie and blazer to work everyday? And how many of them are women?

It's a huge bill for parents

It creates a wall between parents and the school and kids and the school

It's just an unnecessary cause of stress all round and hasn't been proven to have any benefit on education. We seem to just cling on to it as a British thing which has always been done

My family had plenty of money, but my parents didn’t really believe in ‘fashionable’ clothes. I used to dread mufti days when everyone would be in cool outfits and I’d be in something ‘pretty but practical’. Uniform equalises more than just financial situation.

I dont replace uniform in the summer.

I do it throughout the year. Get new shirts when they need them. An odd blazer etc.

I have never had a massive film in August.

Tbh, I am not fussed either way.

bill not film

We never had this. But then again we had full uniforms (so there was no opportunity for ‘designer’ coats etc. It’s the same at my son’s school. Everyone wears exactly the same stuff.

@MonChatEstMagnifique most schools whose uniform I am familiar with have their own coats and bags.

"the signet rings they are wearing are bling'd to all hell and back"

which is trashy, not classy and everyone will know they're fake.

But agree, ways will be found to mark out details of appearance to mark the in-crowd from the rest.

It would be exactly the same if there were no uniform. But the differences are less than when there are fewer rules.

...the clothes worn will be getting in excess of 100% additional wear and tear, which means replacing more expensive clothes quicker
My eldest's school trousers cost £30 odd a pair.
Out of school he wears mostly Primark jeans that cost £7-£9 and they don't wear through at the knee like his school trousers.

When there is no uniform you have the opportunity to wear clothing which is harder wearing and activity appropriate.

Jewellery is a pain in the arse as it can get lost, stolen or cause damage - earrings ripping ears etc. Ditto false nails - have seen girls fight and rip each other's nails off. Plus they are used as a reason for not writing etc.

Make up - if there were no rules, some kids would come in looking like Krusty the Clown. Hair doesn't bother me at all, but eyebrows do as they look so bleeding stupid.

The point of uniform should be that it is comfortable and hard wearing enough to get you through a school day. We changed from sweatshirts to blazers and the kids like them as they always have a pen and their bloody phone in their pocket. However, some kids insist on stretching the rules and so it becomes more restricted- if girls didn't wear skirts that barely covered their arse, we wouldn't be insisting on specific skirts with a school badge.

My DC used to go to a non-uniform school.
No dramas about what to wear each morning, she just got dressed, in exactly the same way she manages to in the holidays or at weekends.

I definitely found it cheaper.

I found it easier to store her clothes as she needed fewer - you still need some normal clothes and shoes even if you wear a uniform every school day.

I found laundry less stressful - I have to make sure white shirts are washed and ironed, or that PE kit is always ready for example, whereas before she just wore whatever was clean. I definitely do more laundry, because I have to get those things turned around quickly rather than waiting until I have a full load, or for good drying weather. I also use the tumble dryer much more.

Dd found it easier to dress weather appropriately - shorts and t shirt in summer, cosy trousers and hoodie in winter. She didn't have to be encased in grey and black teflon and polyester.

I can't really think of any advantages of uniform.

most schools whose uniform I am familiar with have their own coats and bags.

I don't know any schools who have their own coats and bags, maybe that would help. But then some parents who only buy one coat to wear at both school and home may be unhappy that they have to buy a school coat and a coat for home which would be more expensive. I don't think schools can make everyone happy.

However, some kids insist on stretching the rules and so it becomes more restricted- if girls didn't wear skirts that barely covered their arse, we wouldn't be insisting on specific skirts with a school badge.

This is what really annoys me about DS's secondary. The staff won't/can't/don't enforce the uniform policy, which makes it harder for us parents who do insist our kids follow the rules. Then they make the uniform more expensive and harder to buy.

We didn't have that much as teens/kids. Non uniform days were the worst, knowing that what I had to wear would be judged by my peers as not good enough.

The posters who are saying that their children went to non uniform schools and there was no drama probably have enough money to ensure their children are not wearing the same thing every day.

My secondary age children are at school in a very affluent, middle class area. There are some very well-off families, and some not so well off families.

Nobody wears flashy jewellery. They wouldn't be allowed to wear belts. No designer handbags. The flashiest bag you'd see would be a Superdry rucksack. This is very much a "not much money but desperately trying to prove otherwise" phenomena.

My ds starts 6th form college tomorrow with no uniform. I took him shopping for new clothes on Friday and spent more than £300 on a jacket, joggers, hoodie, 2 T shirts and a polo top. His dad spent a further £200 on a pair of trainers and a backpack.

I had a conversation with him about the value of money. He has AS and often struggles with realising how much things cost. He is obsessed with clothes and aftershave, skincare and trainers.

His dad has a lot of money and is very materialistic and I think it's rubbed off on ds although he does love his Primark jeans.

I think he will be in for a shock tomorrow when he realises that college is not a fashion parade.

Thank God for uniform I say. So much better than picking different clothes each morning.

I think all schools should have a plain polo shirt in their choice of colour and plain jumper, then plain trousers or skirt. All the kind that's available cheaply in the supermarket. It's the logos that are expensive as you're then paying £10+ for one jumper or top instead of £5 for a pack of five.

The different is that's you chose to spend £300 though Zoflorabore. If I didn't buy my son the new uniform he would be punished by the school.
If my 15 year old needs a new t-shirt I can choose to buy him a £5 Primark one or a £30 Levi one depending on how flush I am.
With uniform I have to spend £40 on a Blazer and £30 on a jumper, there is no choice.

BunchofBastards when I went to school, there was a girl in my class who came to school in full Goth mode. White makeup, crazy hair, the lot. Nobody batted an eyelid because she behaved well and did her school work. Her appearance did not matter one bit.

And I was that kid from that family where there wasn't much money for lots of clothes. It wasn't an issue because the school came down like a tonne of bricks on bullying of any kind.

The UK has become obsessed with style over substance. Appearance matters more than merit. It's ridiculous.

MrsJBaptiste I pick clothes every morning. I work in a non uniform environment. Oddly enough it causes me no stress. Could be because I am a functioning human being, what do you think?

DD goes to a non uniform primary. The kids are from mixed social backgrounds some very wealthy and some poor. Picking clothes isn't a hardship at all. The kids are all dressed in comfy, practical clothes. There are non uniform secondaries nearby too and again because they wear their own clothes daily it's no drama and they all dress similarly according to their tastes in practical clothes not like some of the ill fitting academy uniforms I see about which cannot be comfy.
Another bonus no stressing if uniform is clean on a Sunday night. I do find the British obsession over school uniform crazy when most other countries do fine without.

I completely agree with you. My dc school doesn't have a uniform and it is quite unique in the diversity of the children who come from all walks of life and various countries. Multi millionaire to sink estate.
You really would have no idea, whose parents had money, most kids just wear trainers/ pumps jeans t shirt and hoodies. Any brands are what everyone would wear, most expensive maybe Converse or Vans.

But if you don't have much money to buy clothes, then making some of them HAVE to be uniform doesn't really help.
If you can wear whatever you want, you can pick stuff up cheaply from the charity shop, wear hand me downs from neighbours etc.
Uniform isn't cheaper than other clothes, it isn't harder wearing than other clothes.

And when non-uniform is the norm, other children don't tend to really care what others are wearing anyway.

My dc at private school. Everything is uniformed including bags and coats. I find this very good. Plenty of dc in second hand uniform including mine and no problems with designer stuff. I honestly think it works out cheaper than if they didn’t have uniformed everything. It also ensures if one person can’t afford what’s in fashion they won’t stick out at all.
When I was at school it was blindingly obvious who could afford what based solely on non uniform items ie what you describe, designer coats etc.

I did say that notso thst school uniform has in some vases been bery poor quality, its not reason to dispense with it, just to imorove the quality of it

I think particularly where boys school trousers are concerned,or girls wearing trousers, and playing football in breaks. The knees go through, kust rubbish quality. Or they're not respecting their uniform.