To tell the school my child will NOT go to detention..

[Nataliaa]

DD year 7 has been given a 30 minute detention tomorrow afternoon, after school. Since starting secondary, she has received 2 detentions- 1 for forgetting her PE shorts and 1 for not completing homework.
I fully supported the school and the consequences DD had to face on these 2 occasions. She did learn from each time and since then, she has always been organised with PE kit and completing homework.
DD is well behaved, works hard and all school reports have been brilliant so we have no concerns.

Back to today… it is 31 degrees and the school allowed blazers to be left at home, but still expected the children to be in their shirt, ties and trousers (the school recently banned skirts, and does not allow shorts so all children are in trousers. All year round)

During lunch break, DD loosened her tie and untucked her shirt as she was so hot and sweaty… and then forgot to tuck in her shirt and redo tie before going back in.
She walked into English and straight away the teacher told her to tuck the shirt in and do tie, which she did.
Then whilst sat down she untucked the shirt again… she then got up for something and the teacher noticed the shirt untucked and as she had already been told once, she was given the detention.
DD tried to explain she was just so hot and sweaty, she felt she couldn’t concentrate and loosening the shirt helped.. she was then told off for answering back.

I do not agree with this detention at all. Other local schools have let kids go in wearing PE kits in this heat. The teacher was not wearing shirt and tie- she was wearing a floaty and cool summer dress.
I can’t think for the life of me how an untucked shirt would affect DD’s education, and why it’s more important to stick to a strict dress code rather than doing whatever is comfortable in this heat!!

I have never been in the position to disagree with the school, and not sure what would happen if I refuse to let DD go to this detention… also not sure if that’s setting the wrong message to DD, as I always encourage following school rules!!

Any advice? Is this a hill worth dying on? What would you do?

But by law, employers have a “duty of care” to make sure working temperatures are reasonable for their employees. This means if extreme temperatures are expected, employers should:

• Carry out health and safety risk assessments.
• Remove or reduce any risks found.
• Make plans for keeping staff comfortable and safe.

Dress appropriately for the weather conditions; if there is a dress code or uniform policy, speak to the employer about allowing some flexibility.

https://cpdonline.co.uk/knowledge-base/business/when-too-hot-work

School leaders should make sure they take any steps necessary to make sure children are safe and comfortable.

What are the rules for uniform in hot weather? Schools could consider relaxing uniform rules during hot weather to make sure pupils are comfortable.
Children should wear loose, light-coloured clothing to help keep cool

Teachers should also encourage children to take off their blazers and jumpers.

Symptoms of heat stress:

• Children may seem out of character or show signs of discomfort and irritability (including those listed below for heat exhaustion).

https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2025/06/hot-weather-and-heatwaves-guidance-for-schools-and-other-education-settings/

You are part of the problem of the decline of behaviour in schools OP. You are doing a great job of preparing her from employment.

I think you'd be better telling your daughter that she must do the detention and then encourage her to challenge the hot days uniform policy through the proper channels, the school council perhaps? then arrange a petition or through Head of Year etc.
By sending her to the school you've accepted the Behaviour (and sanctions policy) and therefore have nothing to challenge.

Thank you so much for such a thoughtful, insightful post.
This has helped me more than I can put into words! I am going to do exactly what you’ve said you would do in my position 💐

How did you come to that conclusion?

For goodness sake it was 31, not 51. Hardly a need to strip off or claim classrooms are death traps🤷‍♀️.

That’s standard/mild for us in high summer and there is no issue. Kids don’t get a uniform pass for that and I never even consider whacking air con on until it is over 32. And no, not all classrooms here are ‘designed for heat’, quite the opposite with most actually as we had 70 odd years with deliberately badly designed buildings (why-cost) and this coincided with building boom which accounts for most of the buildings we have today, nor do all classrooms have air con. None of mine had any issues with collars, ties or long pants, or getting on with their work because that was simply never an option for them all and if one claimed it was, even with temp considerably over 30’s into early 40’s, I’d certainly back detention as I’d see it as taking piss somewhat.

It's an AI generated post, OP.

Good that's it helpful but no human insight went into it.

I don’t understand the whole not answering back issue. She gave an explanation. I don’t understand why this teacher is being so anal about this.

Well happily most employers are more flexible. I used to work at Screwfix where we had hot weather policies. I wore shorts all through the winter because I was pregnant and constantly boiling, and no one cared. 🤷🏻‍♀️ We had uniform t-shirts as well. I've still got the massive one I got during said pregnancy and use it as a nightie.

What was it about the other pupils that enabled them to keep to the rule?

This is one of the main reasons I turned from originally being very pro school uniform to being against them having it at all.

Schools should not be allowed to have school uniform because so many of them seem utterly incapable of using any sort of common sense with it.

Offices are increasingly allowing casual and more sensible attire for hot weather. My DH is currently able to go in to work in his shorts and a short sleeved polo shirt. Not full on suit, shirt and tie! Common sense! They are far from alone either.

School uniform is therefore a very outdated concept that does little to prepare children for the world of work because the rules are too inflexibly applied by schools themselves. Idiots.

That doesn't mean that a foolish and inflexible "rule" should not be challenged.

It absolutely is. Glad someone else noticed.

OP - another thing to take into consideration is that women are more sensitive to heat depending where they are in their cycle too. If you really wanted to, you (anyone) could make the argument that inflexible uniform rules disproportionately affect female bodies. It's also worse for anyone with higher body fat.

So to avoid being discriminatory perhaps they could just be less dickish about uniform in unusually hot weather unless they can prove overheating doesn't affect their ability to learn in any way. (& doesn't impact behaviour & being ratty & irritable)

She was rude , she does detention .

I could not wear a tie in this weather and I work in an air conditioned office.

How was she rude? Did you even read the OP?

As pp have said, the ‘person’ who has told you what they would do is AI.

Which is fine if it’s good advice!

See this is where it falls apart for me. Everyone else managed to cope without untucking their shirts and nobody else got a detention. You'd need to be able to explain that to the school if you're going to make your daughter an exception.

Because you're marking her out as worthy of special treatment among her peers when everyone else managed not to untuck their clothing and nobody else got a detention. You're essentially going against a uniform policy that nobody else had a problem adhering to even in the heat and expecting your daughter to be treated differently. That's not going to prepare her for the realities of the workplace. It's teaching her to have unrealistic expectations and to think that she doesn't have to do the things her colleagues will have to do if she doesn't want to.

Its that hot that many schools are asking parents to come and pick up kids early.

So if schools can recognise they have to make adjustments for the children, then OP is allowed to make an adjustment for her child too.

A shirt with a tie done up to the neck is unbearable in this heat.

At my dd's school, a missed detention meant it they had to attend a longer one.
If that was missed, they went into internal exclusion for a day.

I would tell her to suck it up, do the detention.

Teachers often have to follow the school's policy about discipline, whether they agree with it or not.

Did you even read it yourself ? Daughter admits she was snappy and spoke back in a rude tone and she now wishes she didn’t answer back in that manner ? What part of rude don’t you get?

That’s true- those soldiers who collapsed of heatstroke at the changing of the guard last year should be disciplined though- how dare they collapse?! The others didn’t.

what has that got to do with anything? There is nothing in the this thread to suggest that the pupil in question normally flouts the rules.