to think suits are inappropriate for sixth formers?

[allsfairin]

I have had children go to several different sixth forms, some require suits and ties for boys / matching tailored skirt and jacket for girls. Some have a much more relaxed dress code.

My niece is now attending a sixth form which requires her to wear the matching tailored jacket and skirt, and she bought quite an expensive one, but the skirt is deemed too short and she needs to buy another. These items of clothing cost a lot especially for girls, and she has to wear the same one every day, as she can't really afford two.

My son attended this school more than 10 years ago, and I was happy enough for him to conform to the suit rules then, particularly as boys can quite often pick up suits in second hand shops, so nothing like the expense. It was, and is, a great school, he did very well, and has gone on to a great career.

However, he has never worn a suit since the day he left school, and nor have my other children. It did seem a bit old fashioned ten years ago, but these days, suits seem to me to quite often be a long way from acceptable business wear, and in fact to denote low status in the work place, whereas successful individuals generally wear smart/casual, or even casual/casual.

Looking at my own adult children and their friends, I know successful young people in music, science, finance, event management, energy, engineering - not one ever wears a suit, or even owns one, I know that by the frantic whats apps about 9pm on the evening before an interview recently when a friend of a friend suddenly wondered if he should be attending his interview in a suit and was messaging everyone he knew to see if he could borrow one, and the answer was no, no one possessed one

So IABU to think the insistence on suits in sixth form is outdated and obsolete, and these days denotes low, rather than high status? I think quite a lot of teachers still wear them, and maybe politicians, but these seem to be the only areas of life where they are still quite common

I also think it’s ridiculous. I have never worked in a job where people wear suits to work (across 3 different sectors). Currently I work with a bunch of very highly paid, experienced professionals who are mostly dressed T-shirts and jeans. Sometimes hoodies. No one cares.

But schools uniform policies that seem to have been set in the 1950s appeal very much to a certain type on MNer who absolutely believes that wearing a tie and polyester blazer is somehow important.

I do really hate the ‘well you chose the school, so you have to accept the absurd policies’ argument.

There may be more actual choice involved for sixth form, but that choice might be pretty limited and not feature any institution with sensible dress codes.

Even worse when you’ve got staff telling students absolute nonsense about how they must be wearing a primani suit ‘to prepare them for the world of work’ when those kids know fine week that their parents don’t wear suits to work and aren’t in any way unusual. This silliness really undermines staff credibility.

I think you must work at a different university to me then; lots of ‘interesting’ outfits here!
I also think young people change massively between 16 and 18 and a standard uniform takes away an awful lot of stress and competitive dressing.

Why does standard uniform need to be a suit and tie?

Why not just jeans and a T-shirt?

The issue for me is smart adult clothing is often far too big for teenage girls. My daughter is tall but super slim. Around a UK size 2 or a small 4. When she joins 6th she’ll be expected to wear tailored skirts or trousers and I’ve yet to find an affordable ones that fits and I’m looking early. She wears the same school skirt she’s had since year 7 in the smallest size and that’s a little large. I can not send her to another school with a different dress code because of the lack of reliable public transport. Suspect I’ll have to buy something and have it altered which will not be cheap.

Which is OK if you live somewhere like a city with choice of sixth forms/colleges.

In lots of places, there is little or no choice, even more so if you live somewhere with crap public transport.

But that's still what people sign up to when they go to the college/6th form. They've made their position clear.

Personally I don't see the point in suits as a dress code, but if the college I choose has that expectations it would be a bit silly of me to sign up to it and then not meet the expectation.

All the local sixth forms - all four of them insist on suits for girls and boys. There is no choice but to suck it up. Schools have always been a bit slow to catch on, they might join the rest of us in 21st Century soon, we can only hope!

Suits are as outdated as your language, high and low status?

DarkDarkDark
Students can drive change from within. I know of a school with 6th form where changes were made that were started by students advocating for change.
Schools are behind modern workplaces in many respects.

Most people I know with well paying jobs don’t wear suits, I agree it seems outdated.
At my local secondary the teachers have to wear blazers. The local MP is a cabinet minister. I saw a photo of the MP at the school he was dressed in jeans and no jacket while the teachers with him were in suits- looked peculiar.

I agree - teachers are put in a position of defending silly school uniform policies, it’s not credible and by the time the kids are 16 even the compliant, well behaved, studious kids no longer respect anything the school says either.

Suits were perfectly normal when I was in 6th form (admittedly a long time ago!), and people liked it because it gave them more choice than standard school uniform. It certainly helps to engender a proper working environment and professional feeling. And if they weren't buying a suit then they'd have to buy other clothes instead, so the money argument doesn't really work.

The majority will never wear a suit for work.

The advantage of wearing your own normal clothes for school is that you wear them out of school - evenings, weekends and holidays. Non uniform school saved me in a fortune over the 14 years of DT’s schooling.

My office (law firm) has a dress for your day policy (or in my boss’s words, I don’t give a toss). But there are occasions where we are expected to be suited and booted (or at least a blazer if Teams), and I wouldn’t dare show up to a job interview in anything less than a formal suit!

My sixth form (around 2001 - 2003?) was just casual but since I knew one teacher who taught in a school where they had suits 1 day a week.

It seemed a good idea to me? If you do wind up in a job interview or other situation where suits are expected it’s not a bad thing to have one around that you’re comfortable wearing.

As for cost, plenty of stuff on Vinted etc.

I agree every day is unnecessary.

Not at my kid’s secondary - they were shown the door and told if you don’t like the way we do things you are free to use it. I lost all respect for their HT. She lead by threats to everyone - very weak indeed!

So our kids returned to school from lockdown 4 weeks before their A levels - lots of suits no longer fitted. The school insisted new suits were bought for 4 weeks wear or the kids would not be allowed to sit their A levels - the money argument certainly does work! What a waste!

The 6th Form my child attends is the only one in the area not to require what's referred to as 'business dress' i.e. suits.
They were going to bring it in 5 years ago but received lots of negative feedback so changed their decision - well done them.
Schools with a suits uniform policy just look out of touch with the current world of work.

I would argue that it would be more useful to have a dress code such as 'smart casual' or 'business casual' (albeit I don't actually think business casual is appropriate as it's school, not business) than a set uniform so they can start learning what is and isn't appropriate within the bounds of such a code which is somewhat subjective - that would be a better preparation for the workplace.

Dd3 goes to a private school and will be entering their 6th form next year. It is a girls only school and the girls have to wear the regulation suit with matching blouse and jumper. My elder dds also went there, they left 12/13 years ago and their 6th form uniform was much less prescriptive. Ds went to a public school and he had to wear a suit, the blazer has to be bought from the school. As he was a monitor he was allowed to wear any colour jumper or waistcoat.
At my 6th form college in the early 80s we could wear anything, appropriate or not! I think that was better preparation for university.

Our Sixth Form we could wear whatever we wanted. We didn't even need to be smart.

Saying that though, people must know the rules before they apply so I guess if you want to go to that school, then you crack on with the rules.

My son wears a suit to his grammar school sixth form. It’s just like school uniform really. A blaser, 2 pairs of trousers, 5 shirts and a school tie. Bought M&S, washable, £99 )second pair of trousers were extra). Easy for me, easy for him 🤷‍♀️. Mind you, inevitably lots of them have the same suit.

Not sure how it will be when DD gets there next year. Women’s suits ..? I haven’t worn one since 1994! But I’m thinking if it’s casual dress she’ll need a lot more clothes and will spend more time worrying over what to wear as she’s very concious of her appearance.

My sons sixth form wear the school uniform but with a different jumper. I think it’s not such a bad idea.

DD was told to buy a new suit after she got printing ink down the sleeve of her jacket. I was so pissed off about it, she wasn't even wearing it, but there is nowhere to hang coats/jackets so it was over the back of her chair. Her school used to say business dress, but because kits were dressing more casual and saying this is what Mum/Dad wears to the office, they've changed the rules to "dress for an interview".
There's no choice in our area if you want to do A levels, you have to put up with ridiculous dress codes.

The thing is often you don't have a choice. Where I live most of the schools don't have 6th forms but our local catchment school is the exception. There is one bus per hour that is usually full and many parents cannot afford the bus fayre to send their young person to the local college. I had to drive my son most days.

*"dress for an interview".

At all the interviews I've been to (and more recently dd) we've worn something like a smart pair of black trousers and a nice top with maybe a cardigan if it is cold.