School uniform policy changes

[NorthLondonNora]

Old headteacher retired in July and new head sent home a letter in the last week of term, banning certain kinds of school shoes from September onwards.
My 15yo DS's feet seem to have stopped growing and so when his most recent pair wore out in June, I happily bought him a new pair. Unfortunately, the style he chose, though acceptable at the time of purchase, no longer meet the requirements for the new academic year.
AIBU to send him back in them anyway (he's not bothered by doing this) - because I can't afford to throw away £50+ on nearly-new school shoes when he only has one year left in uniform anyway? Or is 6 weeks is enough notice of a change of policy?

Except cheap shoes often don't last
Boys asda school shoes have lasted us most the year and they were £18. That's longer than my (more expensive!) nice adult shoes last!

We had an Asda pair last less than a term before disintegrating. He's hard on shoes but that was fucking ridiculous.

If you send your children to school you are signing up to their rules. Whatever the rules maybe. This means you need to adhere to the uniform code, no holidays in term time etc etc. 6 weeks is plenty of time

Would you feel the same if it was a full uniform change? I'd be very pissed if if I'd just bought a £50 pair of shoes only to be told that they couldn't be worn 6 weeks later, even if money wasn't an issue, that's not enough notice.

My DDs school has just changed from straight skirts to pleated. New year 7's will wear them straight away, but older years are expected to replace the straight ones as they grow out of them, and have over a year before they are expected to be in the pleated ones. This only seems fair to me, as most people don't have money to waste.

Of course, if it's just clamping down on a rule that is already in place, then that's a different matter.

Oh I so wish I could just walk into shoezone & buy cheap shoes for ds (age 13 size 4D with a really shallow foot) & hypermobile Dd aged 15 size 2.5G with a very high instep & tendency to pronate.

Believe me, I would. Dd would not be wearing unfashionable for her age Sketchers & Mary Janes I tell you.

Sooty if the staff don't have kids on the school what interest do they have on the kids footwear, as long as it is 'sensible'.

"We pay your salary" is not meant in an offensive way, it I'd factual! So schools can and should be able to justify rules and decisions. Which should presumably be in the interests of the children. How is requiring hard working families to shell out for new shoes of educational interest?

Bloke1976 we 'chose' no school. Our daughter chose the one closest to our home because almost every child at her middle school was going there. The school have been excellent. However, like other schools there seeming obsession with uniform is really unhelpful.

MaisyPops your post seems to imply the uniform helps them learn. Or that incorrect uniform stops them learning? Do you think it does?

Miaow yes to the dog cocking its leg on a lamp post! He could have chosen to take a firm stance on bullying or harassment, started s new style of student council or international exchange programs, or instigated an art week, or fair trade events, or anti slavery awareness events, but no, being strict about uniform!

Plus it is not just the money! Where we live it is a twenty minute car ride to any shoe shop. That's forty minute round trip by car, massively longer by bus I reckon. That's time, energy, petrol and a waste of a good pair of shoes to suit a head teacher who I would guess cannot possibly justify how those cheap 15 or 18 pound shoes will help the OP's lad learn any better than the 50 quid pair he already owns!

My kids can wear a pair of school shoes for an entire year so it's best for the school to give a years grace before the rule is set in stone.

If school uniform has changed (rather than the head now stating they will enforce rules that had already been stated)

^ this

not that OP has been back

Italiangreyhound
I'm not fussed either way on uniform, having taught in schools with and without uniform.

I do, however, think part of having a good learning culture is having rules which are followed.
E.g the school i taught at with no uniform, students called staff by their first names but they stood up when a member if staff entered.
Eg my current school stipulates a uniform.

What I don't like is when there are reasonable rules and rather than just follow them (eg buy appropriate uniform), people try to find ways to sneak around it and when parents facilitate this it sends the message that only some rules need to be followed and you can pick and choose. The schools I know (like where I currently work) we don't have single supply uniform, we exercise discretion at the end of year etc and we can do that because, on thr whole, our parents back us. In other schools where parents have allowed their kids to break uniform and then fought the sanctions, those schools have had draconian clampdowns.

I'd email the school and explain that you'd bought a pair of new £50 black shoes before the uniform change and you are not in a position to buy him a second new pair.

Uniform doesn't mean better grades or better behaved children. Some rules are just pointlessly pedantic for the sake of being pedantic.

MaisyPops thanks for replying. Personally, I think having issues with ones uniform can be disruptive to some kids so some issues could make learning harder (e.g. not having or wearing a coat in winter).

I don't think school uniform rules teach kids anything positive at all. I do think having a uniform is a good idea, I dread non-uniform day! But I think teachers seeing non uniform compliance as rebellion by students or patents is not always right!

Maybe parents can't afford new shoes, or get them on time. Our school has ridiculously expensive PE kit which must be ordered. Again. a long journey to buy it and I work. So if dd looses her PE kit Friday I couldn't't replace it by Monday as shop is not open at certain times!

If students are making an effort to comply why pick on tiny infringements like wrong shoes? Who is looking at their feet? What this does teach I'd that schools are petty places. "More interest in uniform than bullying" I'm the words of a 12 year old I know!

Some officious people believe that schools can do no wrong and that every regulation/rule is correct and must be followed blindly.

Sorry....

What this might teach is that schools are petty places. "More interest in uniform than bullying" In the words of a12 year old I know.

cherry
I agree on pedantic for pedantic sake.

Unfortunately, my experience is that schools where they've tended to end up very picky and dictatorial are the ones where they've had sizable problems getting people on board with basic and reasonable requests. Lots of little infringements do kill an atmosphere in a school and it becomes a daily battle for staff. It's worse when home aren't supportive. E.g. I've been verbally abused by a child and then home came in for a meeting where I was blamed. Apparently, i shouldn't tell her child to sit down. He would do it when he was ready.

Where there are simple, basic expectations that are followed, it's much nicer for everyone. The consequence of people meeting basic expectations means I don't spend my time having to discipline students, I can get on with teaching and the students can get on with learning.

Italiangreyhound
I think the discretion is key here.

Someone in my form came in wearing dark trainers in the last few weeks with a note asking me to call home. I called home and he's growing so much that it wasnt worth getting any. Would it be ok for the 8 days left if he wore trainers? I said yes.

I can do that because in my school we are supported by home.

It's a cycle thing. Our parents support us because we are reasonable and understanding. We can be reasonable and understanding because our parents support us.

Experince says that the dictatorial approach usually comes about because there have been issues getting basic expectatoons met reasonably. Once thoae schools get to a culture like the one I work in maybe they'll be more like mine.

cherry
I don't think schools can do no wrong or that rules should be blindly followed.

I do think that if more people just followed basic expectations and rules, far fewer schools would need to be so dictatorial.

Cherrytart6

Some parents believe that their children can do no wrong and that every regulation/rule is stupid and must be challenged.

The rule were I work is black sensible footwear, with no logos or other colours showing.

Fairly innocuous, yet we have pupils turn up in bright yellow trainers, sometimes you can't win.

Ps my dd is happy to comply with school rules. so is ds. Plus I have enough money to cope with uniform changes etc. I just disagree with the level of scrutiny that gets upset about style of shoe assuming the shoes are the right colour Bd fit for purpose.

But fit...

MaisyPops your school sounds nice.

I think you've got the wrong end of the stick Maisypops.

My children attend a secondary school where uniform isn't adhered to in a pedantic fashion. They all wear the same shirts but might have white socks instead of black or chunky black boots rather then crappy pumps (and so on!). The parents and ofsted rate the children's behaviour and attitude as excellent. The school ethos and pastoral care is second to non. There is an air of respect and people are treated like like individuals/thrive. Problems are resolved positively.

Italiangreyhound Thank you. It really is.
I think having gone through a few different types of school I do end up with a strong feeling that places function best when there's respect and basic expectations are followed by everyone.

Yes I think I did cherry. Sorry.
Your school sounds a little less strict than mine (we would say shoes and not boots), but the ethos seems similar.

My main thing on uniform threads is that I find when schools end up having to be pedantic, it's often because there's been so much rubbish and people not following basic expectations that they have to spell it out because someone will find a way around a rule and then go 'but irs not in the rules technically'.

It's further back than I care to remember, but my school changed the uniform from grey to green (or 'moss green' as the Head of Pastoral rather pretentiously insisted on specifying) jumpers ahead of a new year. New intake would wear them from day one; existing students would not be affected, but could adopt the new style by choice. A perfectly sensible solution.

I do always wonder why, when the argument for a uniform is that it makes everyone equal, you never see a uniform of white T-shirt and black jeans. It's always blazer with badge, formal trousers, tie in school colours, specified colour and style of jumper... which makes me think PPs are bang on when they say it's all about image.

Italiangreyhound - I couldn't agree with you more excellently put!

I'm all for uniform actually but all this petty detail is counterproductive. My DS old primary had a huge offensive on pupils wearing the 'right' uniform. If they had put the same emphasis on teaching standards, dealing with bullying and pastoral care their OFSTED report might not have been such a disaster...but at least they all looked the part...

Colour it is style over substance. Indeed.

YANBU. School shoes are expensive and 6 weeks is way too short a time to insist everyone buys new ones when their current shoes are already perfectly smart and adequate. 6 months would be more like it.