AMIB to ask high school to rethink banning skirts for year 7?

[MaggyMays]

AIBU… My daughters about to start high school and they have decided to introduce a new uniform policy with no skirts allowed for just the year 7’s. The years above them can have the choice! This seems grossly unfair. I'm sure its not following the guidelines correctly. Has anyone else come across this?

Is this really the battle you’re choosing to pick with your child’s new school? It will not harm your daughter not to have a choice of uniform, it’s not “grossly unfair” it’s completely normal for older year groups to have different privileges or uniform choices (or possibly it’s because they’re phasing out skirts but are letting older ones have skirts if they’ve already got uniform), and no sensible headteacher is going to throw out the policy they presumably have brought in for a reason just because a parent doesn’t like it.

Presumably they’re required to wear trousers, hardly an unusual clothing item, so what guideline don’t you think is being followed?

Edit - link to guidance is below. Which aspect do you think school is not complying with?

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

I've never heard of it, I'm not sure it would bother me though. What does it really matter?

What is unfair? What isn’t following guidelines?

They are telling all pupils to wear trousers; nothing discriminatory or untoward about that.

If they are saying that yr7 must wear trousers, but then they can have the choice from yr8 onwards, then I think the school is being capricious and a bit silly.

But if skirts are being phased out, and they have decided that all new joiners will have the new trousers-only uniform (but those already in the school who have skirts can continue to wear them, avoiding waste and expense to families), then I think the policy is sensible and reasonable

So they are changing the uniform and doing the sensible thing and only introducing it for new starters so that the people who have kids in other years and already have uniform are not having to buy new stuff . Sounds reasonable to me .

No skirts allowed at all at my school. Makes checking uniform much easier, and less difficult for male staff. Unfortunately, we had to implement the policy to protect staff from false and malicious accusations.

'Can you roll your skirt down please?' becomes 'Sir was looking at my insert inappropriate area here'

Is their plan to phase out skirts completely - so they're saying those going into year 7 will never be allowed skirts? They're just not saying it for older years because some of them will already have bought the skirts?

If their plan is to allow the year 7 to wear them when they go into year 8 it seems like a very odd and pointless rule.

Makes checking uniform much easier, and less difficult for male staff

oh yes, best police teenage girls’ clothing to make life easier for men !!

When my ds went in to Y7 it was the first year of a new school uniform at his school. They had to wear it, no one else in the school did as it was being phased in and had to start somewhere. Is the school actually doing that, as PP has asked?

@Tandora did you deliberately ignore the part about how we had to put in the policy because of false and malicious accusations? As in, teenage girls were lying about male teachers looking at them inappropriately?

I'm guessing they are phasing skirts out .

This seems grossly unfair.
It's just their policy now. That's all.
Let it go. They're clothes. It's fine.
It won't affect her learning.

If you cannot cope with it, move her to a school that has skirts.

This. I see the same at the schools around me. A change in uniform is enforced for new starters only so that existing students are not required to replace perfectly good uniform.

Not fair should be held back for something like unequal educational provision.

As others have said, it depends if it's because they are phasing them out.

Whenever uniform changes happen, it makes sense to do it gradually to minimise waste/ expense. So all new starters start with the new uniform, and in a few years' time, no one in the school is wearing skirts.

But if it's just random i.e. year 7 can wear them when they get to year 8 - that seems very strange and singles out the year 7's unfairly.

Which one is it OP?

Yes, my DD in Yr8 wears the "old" uniform
The children in Yr7 wear the new uniform

Apparently DDs year are all going to try to make their old style blazers last until Yr11!

They'll be phasing out skirts altogether. They are a huge area of contention so best to get rid of all together it's not bad option. It's not just about making men comfortable, my classroom was up several flights of steps and I'd have to keep my eyes down or risk being inadvertantly flashed awkward for me and the student. Not to mention the time taken up by having to give sanctions and putting detentions on the system.

I wouldn't complain about the removal of skirts, I would be more inclined to ask about a summer uniform and option of tailored school shorts for the summer due to the expected increasing temperatures and extreme weather events - obviously not an issue this year!

YANBU- but a losing battle. I see nothing wrong with children having a choice to wear skirts, shorts or trousers.

Trousers are hot in summer. An option for both male and females to wear shorts would be better.

I'm sure the male population will soon complain about the appropriateness of trousers too (too tight, too loose, too short, long, high waisted, low waisted etc). It would be ideal if children's uniform could be seen as clothing and not sexualised.

As a pp said I would ask about the option of shorts in the summer - although there may also be the problems of teens wanting them to be very short and/or inappropriately tight.
A friend was recently telling me about the “hierarchy” of skirts at her daughter’s school whereby the shorter your skirt is the more popular and cool you are. It’s a pointless distraction that invites bullying.
Trousers are far more practical, skirts are very cold in the winter, and they create an unnecessary divide between girls and boys - so I would see the introduction of trousers as a good thing

"I'm sure the male population will soon complain about the appropriateness of trousers too (too tight, too loose, too short, long, high waisted, low waisted etc). It would be ideal if children's uniform could be seen as clothing and not sexualised."

It's more than no one wants to see anyone else's underwear. When I was in education it was both boys and girls wearing low slung trousers. I didn't want to see the underwear of either

I wouldn't complain about the removal of skirts

Did you miss the bit where this PP said there were deliberate false accusations?

fair play to the school! About time this happened

Then sanction based on this... A skirt can be worn so it isn't revealing. And so can trousers. Similarly, as you rightly point out above, even trousers can be worn in a way that annoys some.

So, after skirts are banned, shorts not allowed. What's next- overalls? Jumpsuits?

Phasing in unisex clothing so boys can't 'have to be' allowed to wear skirts?

Interestingly, my son's school are re-introducing skirts for "any students who wish to wear one" this Sept. As far back as I can remember the school has had trousers and blazers for all pupils.
They are also introducing shorts.

I think you have misunderstood. There is a fashion amongst secondary school girls at many schools to wear skirts that are extremely short. Not just very short but so short that they are not worth wearing, so short that they are above the blazer line. Staff (male and female) are then placed in the awkward position of having to point out that exposed bottom cheeks or underwear on show is not suitable. As most teenage uniform rebels resent being corrected, they will deflect this by suggesting staff are being pervy for noticing the uncovered area. This puts staff, especially male staff, at risk.
The suggestion wasn’t that male teachers can’t be bothered to enforce uniform policies that involve skirts.