To wish schools didn't have uniforms?

[bluebird14]

I hate them

I absolutely hate school uniforms. They are hideous and prevent children from learning how to dress appropriately according to their body type and the weather.

I literally bought all of my childs polos and trousers for the year for £11. If you think that's expensive I'd like to see what Voodoo magic you do for your clothes shopping

Uniforms can be an expensive initial outlay but considering that they wear them for almost a whole year they are value for money. Keeping up with the latest fashion fads and kids wanting to wear branded trainers and clothes every day would be stressful and expensive.

I used to be very pro school uniform, but less so now having seen the ridiculous means some schools go to to enforce it.

If I am honest, I am quite relieved that my youngest is now about to enter sixth form and uniform days are behind us.

Last September a couple of admin staff at DD3's school took it upon themselves to go round the forms at morning registration and pull each of the girls up in front of the class to measure their skirts and the length of their legs. All of the girls. Their findings were then discussed loudly and in earshot of the rest of the form and telling them that if they didn't like this then they could find another school. It made the girls feel violated.

It wasn't an official policy though. I received a phone call from the headmaster personally apologising and assuring me that this was not a policy and had never even been discussed, let alone authorised. He had only been alerted by a deluge of complaints out of the blue from normally supportive parent and had called the staff concerned into his office to put a stop to it. They had been acting on their own.

I don't agree with uniforms either. Most developed countries don't have them. I can't see any genuine benefit for pupils. Many can tell you that it certainly doesn't stop bullying. Uniforms are expensive, impractical, prevent pupils from selecting clothes that suit their individual taste or needs, and are a cause of argument that distracts from learning.
People who've gone to schools without uniforms will confirm that wearing own clothes doesn't cause any issues. Of course there can still be a dress code to prevent extreme clothing.
As for the argument that uniform prepares pupils for work, this does not stand up either. Most jobs don't require uniform, including the vast majority of better paid/higher qualified ones. For those that do, it's often for safety reasons or to make employees recognisable. Neither of which apply to school pupils. And if you really dislike the uniform you can do a different job.

I agree that they shouldn’t make people buy expensive uniforms that are part of a monopoly but otherwise they are cheaper. You get through the year usually with the same clothes. No way would children not want new if they were wearing different / own clothes. Uniform helps with belonging but also ensuring that buy and large suitable clothes are worn. There would be much more policing of different clothes needed.

Robo, the school that my children are going to next year insists that you buy their uniforms instead of generic ones. So it is expensive at $60 a dress.

I was talking to a girl the other day whose school had just run a 'non-uniform' day. She said it was OK now she was older (mid-teens I'd say) but when she was younger she got bullied a lot after this type of school day because she has never dressed like all the others. This girl is very stylish but does have a very individual look. She said she definitely preferred the uniform days as she was not a stand-out target then.

Im not sure of their benefit in primary, but I think in secondary uniforms are a good idea. They need to be simplified, though. There is no need for compulsory ties or blazers and some schools need to be less strict on shoes.

Trousers and a shirt is smart and can be cheap if the school use good suppliers.

Uniform at primary school was relatively cheap as could buy a generic cardigan or sweatshirt and cheap supermarket uniforms.

Most secondary school here have approved uniform suppliers. So whilst they are state schools, the pe kit is in the region of £100-150 depending if you buy the so called optional tracksuit or not (you don’t buy it and then get emails home saying that the tracksuit is required!!) and then blazers and jumpers £80 for one blazer and jumper. More than one jumper needed so over £100.

Also the shirts, skirts and trousers come from the approved supplier so whilst they look like bog standard white shirts and black bottoms they have some kind of detail which means those incorrectly wearing non approved substitutes stand out and then get into trouble for not being in uniform.

From my experience with two older children and one current year 7. I know the pe kit isn’t replaced in its entirety every year but there is always something lost or outgrown the same with the blazer and jumper.

There isn’t a single secondary school near here that has non uniform. I would like to see schools withdraw uniform and have a sensible dress policy. Like the American schools. So using common sense about what is and isn’t suitable attire.

How many other countries have the same archaic take on uniform that the uk has?

Having a non uniform day is not comparable with never wearing uniform.
Schools can still have a dress code that bans branded stuff.
And why would not having uniform cause arguments in the morning? Secondary age pupils can dress themselves and go to school with no input from parents. If the clothes are completely inappropriate school will deal with it same as if they don't wear their uniform properly.
Dressing in things that you want to wear and are appropriate for school is a useful skill.
And the problem with dressing to belong is that if someone hates school they will not feel they belong just because they are dressed the same. It will probably make them feel worse.

I think uniform is good, but maybe a more relaxed version because the reason I stand by uniform is that it prevents bullying. But now the uniform is getting so OTT that it probably doesn't stop bullying. I have a friend who teaches in America and her school has a relaxed uniform of polo shirts in a variety of colour options and khaki/chino type trousers. That way there is some variety, it's pretty casual and not super strict, but it helps prevent those with little money standing out like sort thumbs and getting bullied, and it also stops the argument about what is inappropriate school clothing for girls. (The dreaded short shorts and skirts that risk flashing your pants.)

Schools in developing countries have uniforms, which I can see the point of as it means the children don't come to school in rags. (although thr uniform itself often looks pretty ragged).But generally it's UK, Australia/Nz, some ex British colonies and private schools elsewhere. I think uniform is a throwback to the old class system.

I love school uniform and I love wearing a uniform. No worries about what to wear, I know what we both have to wear and there is no scrabble in a morning to think oh will that go with that etc.

On the whole I think they are a good thing but when I see ludicrous policies like the thread about having to wear a blazer in this heat, I wonder if I am right.

As for putting kids in internal exclusion for not wearing the right uniform. How is that helping their education?

You'll never get rid of uniform in the UK.

Whatever arguments you put against it there are a whole load of reasons why.

From being able to identify children outside of school, to the image it promotes of the school its self ( value judgements are made). To parents, like those on here supporting uniform. Please note that these are not an encyclopedic, nor ranked in order of any importance.

I personally like the idea that it gives the children something to rebel against. :)

I've been involved in the foundation of two secondaries, on both occasions a dress code rather than uniform was promoted, and on both occasions almost unanimously voted against by parents.

Schools that insist on expensive uniform are going against DOE rules, and should be reported.

Yes non uniform works very well in other countries, and yes it works extremely well in some schools I have experience of.

But you need to get the majority opinion on your side, and at the moment that ain't gonna happen.

love them!
Easier, cheaper, no competition, the rules are much easier to understand - even if some parents try to make exception for their snowflakes, and you only need 5 sets a weeks and a few casual clothes.

I went to uniform and non-uniform schools myself. I take the uniform any day, you just blame the school for what you are wearing. Non-uniform schools still need a rule book!

Around here, all the Primary and Secondary kids can wear their PE kit during the summer day "heat wave". Most non-uniform schools I know don't allow shorts.

One of the most positive things of English schools (because I don't know for the rest of the UK) is the mandatory uniform. If there's something you don't like, try to get the school to change it if you are in the majority, no rules are fixed in stone.

YABU. Everyone has to wear the same, so no-one feels any pressure to have to have the latest fashions etc.

Simple basic uniform = great. No thought process about what to dress 'em in in the morning, no worrying about any decent clothes getting ruined, just pull the next of the clean ones out of the laundry pile and get it on the child.

Ridiculously over the top usually a bloody new academy uniform with only one supplier and some obscure shade of colour for the trousers and logos everywhere to mean you can only get it from one shop = fuck off nope.

I work in a non uniform school. Never had any bullying about what people are wearing. Just doesn't happen. Also no competition most kids wear jeans and t-shirt. It's not like own clothes day because it's normal for them.

Why do people still use the 'stops bullying' myth. We had school uniform but there was still bullying about clothes: coats, trainers, bags.....and everything else from hair to spots. Uniform does NOTHING to stop bullying. It makes it easier for parents in some ways but this all depends on how enforced and strict the school is. Personally I think we need to emcourage individuality.

Why do people still use the 'stops bullying' myth. We had school uniform but there was still bullying about clothes: coats, trainers, bags.....and everything else from hair to spots.

True, kids will bully about anything and everything. Why add to the mix even more things to poke fun at though? Better to make everyone wear the same.

Also - real adult life often requires dress codes and uniforms. Nothing wrong with preparing kids for this.

It's a wonder how adults in countries that don't generally require school uniform manage to figure out what to wear to work.

My children went to a school with no uniform (primary).

Maybe it is different at secondary, but from my experience,

There was no bullying about clothes - nobody particularly cared about what anyone else was wearing (though they did tend to wear broadly similar clothes - jeans/leggings/joggers, t shirt, hoody, trainers - nothing innapropriate)

There were no arguments the night before or in the morning over what to wear - DC just got up and put some clothes on, just like they did during the school holidays.

I never experienced any pressure from DC about particular clothes.

I saved money because DC just wore their normal clothes (particularly on shoes, because I didn't have to buy impractical "school" shoes).

I didn't have to faff around making sure uniform was laundered at the weekend, they just wore whatever was clean from the wardrobe.

DC tended to be more comfortable, because they could dress for the weather.

If you ever lost clothes, they would be returned promptly because everyone would recognise them.

I'm always baffled that people think uniform stops bullying. It really really doesn't. In the absence of own clothes as a marker of whether you're poor, uncool etc, kids have a million other things to pick on (including how you wear the actual uniform) - phone, bag, watch, trainers, hair, make-up (or lack of it), lunch, pencil case....

I think uniform is primarily a marketing tool to appeal to parents, many of whom still seem to believe that a smarter uniform means a better school and better behaved kids.