Change to school PE kit, does this sound reasonable?

[lucie8881]

Not sure whether I’m missing something glaringly obvious so I thought I’d see what others opinions are on this. For background, my 2 daughters attend the same high school, one in year 10, the other year 8. The basic PE kit comprises of a polo shirt to be worn with either shorts, tracksuit bottoms or a skort. The skort was introduced three years ago, it’s a short a-line style gym skirt with integrated cycling shorts. All the kit has the school emblem and colours and can only be purchased through one supplier specified by the school. Due to coronavirus precautions in place, on PE days, children are to attend school in their PE kits with their blazer over the top.

At the start of the school year I asked my daughters what their preference was for PE kit and both opted for a skort and a pair of tracksuit bottoms, for when the weather was cooler. However, my eldest DD has had a growth spurt so her tracksuit bottoms are now too small.

During the summer holidays last year a new head teacher came into position, and from the outset he seems to have taken issue with the skorts. On several occasions he has asked girls to pull the skorts down as they are too short. But because of the integrated shorts you can’t really make them longer or shorter.

Then this afternoon I receive an email from the school, addressed to all parents, stating that with immediate effect skorts are not to be worn as it’s been identified as a safeguarding issue.

Now I’ve got just 2 days to get hold of some shorts for my eldest, which irritates me on a few levels. My DD has worn the shorts previously but didn’t like them as the waistband was thick and itchy and the legs were too loose fitting so we’re more revealing than she was comfortable with. Plus they’re not the cheapest and I’m not able to shop around. There’s no point buying anymore tracksuit bottoms as they are standard length and will be far too short.

I just can’t see what safeguarding issue there could be around the skorts? Unless I’m missing something?? My concern is that the change is fuelled by the head teachers own personal views on what is appropriate dress for women/girls.

I’m going to email the school tomorrow to ask whether there has been an incident that I’m not aware of that has led to the change.

Am I being unreasonable for being annoyed by the sudden change to PE kit and missing a genuine safety concern?

I was going to say email and ask what safeguarding issues.

Then reread and it's going to be because of getting to school and back.

It might still be worth asking what they mean specifically. Whether they think that there could be problems with random men, or whether they think it reflects badly on the school.

I don't think shorts will be any better if that's their thinking.

So that's a bit weird.

They have said in the message that if a child turns up in a skort they will be asked to get changed. They didn't state explicitly that they would be sent home but unless they have something with them to wear, being sent home seems the only likely action.

That's the thing, the shorts are shorter than the skirts and they don't have the fitted undershorts.

I'll investigate further and see whether there is some sort of sound rationale.

The decision to announce the change with immediate effect is unreasonable of the school unless it is going to provide a replacement garment free of charge. In your situation, I would definitely contact the school to ask for an explanation of how wearing a skort jeopardises your DDs' safety. I would also mention that the ball girls at Wimbledon - also teenagers - wear skorts as part of their uniform and are photographed and filmed doing so... and that your DDs will need to continue wearing their skorts until they have outgrown them.

If they are going to make this change and it DOES seem VERY

Girls must alter what they were because "Male Gaze"

Then they should do so for the start of the new school year not 3 months before the end of one.

YANBU

wear obviously

Do you know any other parents with whom you can form a pressure group? Groups are always better than discrete dissenting voices.
Sometimes you just have to dig your heels in with these little dictators.

You cannot make uniform changes with immediate effect. That is absolutely outrageous. Is it a private school?

I would be questioning it and wanting a clear explanation of the safety implications. Would also mention that you are uncomfortable that this seems to represent policing of female bodies which is discriminatory.

Unless your daughter is unusually tall then there should surely be another size up of trackies. If there isn't I would buy a plain pair in the relevant colour and inform the school that you would love to purchase the official school ones but unfortunately they don't sell the size you need.

These people lack any sense.
Dds school uniform is similar. They have shorts. We had an email suggesting girls can wear leggings under them if it makes them more comfortable.
Job done.

Definitely email school asking for a further explanation of why it's a safeguarding issue. I'm utterly perplexed as to how it's a safeguarding issue but shorts on their own aren't! I'd also make sure to add the Chair of Governors, council safeguarding officer and even the Director of Children's Services to the email so that they're also required to provide an explanation (if there actually is one!).

Dd has uniform skort which is too short for her to be comfortable wearing it on public transport. So she wears 3/4 leggings in the same colour under it. Would the school be ok with that? It’s a cheap solution, unless you need the leggings to be an unusual colour.

Making any change where parents have to buy new uniform with immediate effect is ridiculous. Doing it because of safeguarding is also crazy. My DD’s school has skorts and they are lovely! They wear them on the bus now on PE days-I don’t se the problem.

I’d email and head and CoG to express your concerns. Are any other parents cross? FB usually has a school group.

I would first email ti ask Exactly what the safe guarding issue is. Write the email in a way that really pins it down.

Also adequate warning should be given expecting an immediate change is not acceptable. People need time to save up and/or source .

Can the supplier even cope with demand if half the school suddenly needs new shorts in the next 24 hrs?

Skorts aren't a safeguarding issue. Teenage girl legs are perceived as a safeguarding issue. If there is a real safeguarding issue, it's people (probably males statistically speaking) behaving inappropriately and therefore the intervention should focus on male behaviour rather female dress.

As a headteacher they need to be mindful about the lesson they are teaching their pupils and it isn't a good one. It's teaching female pupils that they need to change their behaviour due to a problem caused by males, rather than asking males to change their behaviour due to a problem caused by males. It's a terrible lesson to teach teenagers and it sets us up for another generation of the same patriarchal crap.

Personally this is the hill I would chose to die on. I would take three actions:

1. discuss the rights and wrongs of this with my daughters
2. see if I could gain consensus with other parents
3. challenge the school hard. I'd want to understand exactly what made it a safeguarding issue and fight it.

Here's the DfE's guidance on uniform. I'd suggest several aspects have not been followed.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-uniform

I am getting increasingly cross with people describing shorts or skirts on girls as a safeguarding issue.

I would be writing to explain that skorts are thirdly appropriate sports wear, no different to shirts. And to state the importance of not giving the impression that girls are in any way responsible for boys and men acting like creeps. His role,in this is to educate the boys and young men not to be creeps,a do you would like to know exactly how he is dealing with this point. Because girls in sports gear shouid nit be a problem, and you are apconcerned that he thinks that right now it is

If it is truly an emergency safeguarding issue, such that the must change with immediate effect, they should not be specifying what to wear instead, beyond "shorts".

To suggest you all have to go to one retailer as a matter or urgency, who probably doesn't even have enough stock, is ludicrous.

Either way, teenage girls legs are not unsafe. I'd be interested to hear if they think it's safeguarding regarding being out in public, or if they perceive the risk to be on school premises.

Safeguarding my backside

It’s the headteacher getting hot under the collar at girls wearing in his eyes “mini skirts”.

Yanbu

Sod that. They can’t bring it into force with immediate effect... and I would also like to know how it’s a safeguarding issue.

I just read the guidance that Tustedformula linked upthread. Straight away I can see there are quite a few points that this Headteacher has not followed.

I would just email back in and say

Dear school

I have just seen your notice about the requirement to replace skorts with shorts with immediate effect.

I wonder if you could explain the so-called safeguarding issue with skorts, they are worn on a regular basis by many women in a sports or leisure context. If you believe that men are leering at our children, I would suggest that an approach to the police would be more appropriate than expecting young girls to stop wearing acceptable sportswear.

In any event if you are changing the uniform I believe that there is a requirement to give a notice period. I would suggest that a term in this case is reasonable. As this term has only just started, I am happy to provide a different uniform item in September but not before, especially as covid has meant my dd has not worn the items as much as she would have done normally anyway.

Love and hugs, Lucie.

(maybe not the love and hug bit )

The head will be aware of the guidance though, so it does suggest something big has happened to bring about such dramatic action. I'd suggest the action is still wrong, but I'd also guess something awful has happened