To think boys in school uniform shorts at -3c is neglect.

[DragonMumE]

Just returned from rural primary school in Lakes. Young lads in school uniform shorts - it's minus 3 here. I class this as neglect. Discuss.

Are people struggling to afford winter school uniform? Aldi sells school trousers for less than a coffee (1.75 gbp?) Or worse are they indifferent?

DD used to have swimming lessons with a boy who wore shorts pretty much all year round, unless it was snowing. He just preferred them 🤷🏻‍♀️

Quite a few boys at DD's primary school who won't wear long trousers regardless of weather.

my 4 year old DD point blank refuses to wear tights or trousers, I worry people think this about me! She takes them in her school bag to change into if she wants during the day, but she doesn't like the feel of them. I don't understand but short of pinning her down to get them on (and then she takes them right off) I'm not sure what to do. Saying that, I do live in the far south, so hasn't been as cold

I know an adult who wears shorts all year round, they might prefer wearing them

No issue really. No one at primary had long trousers when I was young. Girls wore skits too!!!

My 11 year old nephew wear shorts to school all year round. Last year in the snow I asked him if he was cold, he told me he was fine as he had 2 pairs of socks on.
He is more comfortable and, therefore more able to learn, in shorts with chilly legs than he is in long trousers so he wears shorts.

If there's a plethora of them it's probably the uniform. Don't posh people keep boys in shorts until they're older? Thinking Prince George

My son wore them year round. It was fine. He survived. He wanted to do it.

I did wonder if it was a sensory thing and the children could be neurodiverse. My hands are red and I was barely out long. I'm wondering if we need to start a uniform bank.

My daughter wears a skirt and long socks to school every day. Is that neglect? The school has heating ...

It's what most young boys wore in the 60s as school uniform with long grey socks, my brother did and it didn't affect him adversely. Is it the school uniform as you mention affording uniform.

There are schools who only allow shorts as part of the uniform.

My son owns a pair of school trousers but won’t wear them. He says that school is too hot. In fairness, he also wears shorts at the weekend.

Ds2 and his group of friends didn't own school trousers last couple of years at primary school. He said he got too hot playing football at lunch. School were OK with it and ss never knocked my door.
They teens now and went out over the weekend in shorts.

Yeah, I get posh kids wear trousers. But brass monkeys it is!

Have you met young boys? The ones at my DC's school who wear them through the winter do so at their own insistence.

My boys did not have any school trousers in primary school, They didn't like wearing them. Shorts all year round, we are in Scotland. So not neglect at all, just children choosing. My boys would happily wear shorts and snow boots, which is quite the look.

I would imagine many of the parents would prefer their DC to wear trousers but they don't want to.

Obviously times have changed but this was my primary school back in the 70,s and 80,s boys were expected to wear shorts all.year round I did feel.sorry for them in winter.

I own 2 lads. They and I like to be toasty warm

The boys seem to prefer it at dd's school. I guess it means they don't end up with soggy knees and ankles after running about on a wet field.

My dp wore shorts right through prep school except the final year aged 12, every one did then. In fact the state school next to mine wore shorts through age 11. As girls we had to wear skirts and white ankle socks, tights were banned as were trousers! We survived

A lot of men wear shorts all year round, whatever the temperature

Do you think the same about skirts?

as long as they have the choice then it’s up to them what they wear

Yeah, some boys just prefer it and some think it's a badge of honour to keep shorts on even when their knees are blue. It's not going to feel so cold when they're running around.

One of my sons preferred shorts for school and I could insist on long socks when he was very young, but when he was older and refused? I couldn't do much about it. No harm came to him, and I had to replace fewer pairs of trousers with the knee gone through from playing football.

I also went to school in 80s/90s. All the boys had long trousers unless it was very hot. It's def colder in North West!

DD has merrily trotted off in her blouse, tie and shorts, with warm boots. Not even a jumper. She wears a coat outside, her classroom is warm.

No sensory issues, she wears thermals at Rugby. Its just a rather hot classroom.