Letter re banning school skirts

[spottedinthewilds]

Has anyone here written a letter to their school regarding banning of school skirts?

Our school have not yet banned school skirts that appear to be disguising this ban by offering different school uniform options. Most of which do not have a skirt option.

I have quite strong feelings against this as I feel that as a school educating young people they should be concentrating on educating their pupils about misogyny and the reasons why they feel school skirt should be banned.

Without wishing to dive into a trans debate, I feel that the trans issue is already eroding women's rights and feel that this is just another step in the wrong direction.

I agree that I am not the best person to word this letter well and wondered whether anyone here has written a similar letter to their school regarding this issue.

If so, would you be kind enough to share all or part of it with me so that I can put together something that I feel makes my point?

Are you saying that you want the skirt to remain part of the uniform?

I don't see the problem with banning skirts in schools with uniforms. Do they allow students to choose their own trousers, or have a range of cuts? There's no single cut that will work for all women's shapes.

DNiece's school banned skirts because the girls were wearing them up Round their arses. Sensible decision tbh. Have no idea why you'd shoehorn trans issues into the argument.

What do you mean by "offering different options"?

Do you mean that the school is revising its uniform and has begun a consultation with parents about which option they would prefer?

To confirm I strongly believe that girls should be able to wear skirts at school.

Why?

Depends on the uniform options.

Compulsory logoed trousers, in one style... unreasonable

Grey or black, range of styles allowed... fine

Joggers or leggings... even better!

Yes 3 or 4 new options only 1 of which has a skirt option.

The option which I feel most people will choose is the option to keep it as it is but without a skirt.

Should just be plain black trousers.

The idea of school uniform is outdated. I see so many young girls (18-22) in the office wearing skin tight mini skirts to work because that's what they wore to school! It's ridiculous.

It will be thanks to the girls who apparently can't follow the rules and wear their skirts at an unacceptable length.
Should women (or rather teen girls) have the right to wear a skirt that shows their knickers?
Well yes....in their free time.
If they can't manage to follow the school rules then either the rules need to change (so no skirts) or they need to wear a skirt that actually covers their arse.
Personally I prefer no uniform at all.
About 90% of the girls would wear jeans, leggings or trackies anyway.

It think girls should have a choice as to whether they can wear skirts or trousers.

Why would you think that they shouldn't?

I hate skirts and never wear them as an adult. But I admit I would have struggled to deal with my teenage heavy periods in trousers at school. There's no way of disguising a leak when you aren't even allowed to tie your jumpers round your waist or wear your shirt out. Our school bottoms were mid grey, which was even worse.

But if a girl wants to wear a short skirt then why shouldn't they?

I don't personally want to wear a short skirt and nor does my child.

However, this is probably my point. Why should girls not wear short skirts? We should be educating young people that by wearing a short skirt it does not give somebody right to abuse or harass them .

I wouldn’t assume that it’s gender reasons. I think short skirts have been a battle between schools and pupils for years and getting rid of skirts prevents the battle of schools being considered sexist for policing skirt length.

I sympathise with the practicalities though. I have 3 kids who went through secondary (both boy and girl) and none of their body shapes suited or matched standard school uniform trousers- even when shops started different fits like longer, slimmer etc Girls in particularly vary in shape so much and o suspect that the ones with hips and curves are probably singled out for breaking yeh rules about not wearing tight trousers.

Trousers are a far more practicsl option

Because allowing skirts encourages some teenage girls to compete about who can get away with the shortest possible skirt and takes teachers unnecessary time trying to impose the school rules on skirt length. I’m amazed at some of the schoolgirls I see walking around locally, looking like a pervert's fantasy with skirts barely covering their bum. They can hardly walk, because of the effort not to show their knickers, so goodness knows how they sit down without flashing. School is not meant to be a fashion show. Trousers are much more practical.

Because it's not socially acceptable.

On a night out? Yes, fine.

At school or work? No.

But if a girl wants to wear a short skirt then why shouldn't they?

The Everyone’s Invited movement has probably led to more schools thinking that they can keep girls “safer” by mandating trousers. Do teachers really want to inspect girls hemlines ? I wouldn’t want to do that and feel like some sort of pervert.

This is a bit cloud cuckoo land though, isn't it. Girls wearing skirts at school that basically show their underwear actually rarely wear similar clothes in their free time - they wear leggings, jeans etc. Wearing them at school is pretty much to garner reaction, play up to boy's attention. Girls dressed in these daft skirts always look incredibly uncomfortable and seem to spend half their time tugging at their hems pulling their skirts down.

If a school is going to have uniform at all, there is no logical reason why it has to include skirts. If they do, they have all the faff of deciding on styles - e.g. pleated, box pleats, kilts, A line etc - and length, and also potentially stipulating colours of tights. If girls (or boys) want to wear skirts, there is plenty of time outside school to do so. I don't think this has anything at all to do with the trans debate, given that if they offer skirts as part of their uniform then they have to allow boys to wear them.

Mainly I think we shouldn't bother with uniforms at all, but if schools really must then they should keep them as simple, cheap and straightforward as possible.

How things have changed.
I fought (and won) for the right to not be made to wear a skirt to school.

But I suppose by the same token the option to choose to wear a skirt should still be there but I couldn't get worked up about it in the same way I did about not being able to choose trousers.

But do you not feel that having the privilege of a captive audience at school that it's a good time and subject to start talking about the whole issue of perverts, misogyny etc?

There seems be such a problem with it and how better than to start educating them whilst they are younger?

Why though? Boys aren't allowed shorts.

It should be trousers and that is it.

The vast majority of girls from yr8 up have their skirts turned up so far their arses are basically on show. If they can't keep to the rules then it's tough really.

Of course they try to educate them about that. All schools do.

But have you ever actually met any teenage boys?

My local secondary does not have a uniform. All the girls wear jeans or tracksuit bottoms, not a single tiny skirt in sight.

Uniform rules are always counter productive and the kids find ways to rebel. Just make the uniform a polo and a sweatshirt and I guarantee all the nonsense will go away.