To think it’s unacceptable for a headteacher….

[hnwis]

On a school trip, to remark on a couple of scantily clad young women walking past, to the sixth formers he’s with.

Not sure why so many posters feel it's impossible a headteacher said this and are so keen to disbelieve it happened. I don't know if he did or didn't say it but as with any line of work there is no shortage of misogynism (and worse) amongst headteachers. Look at Lee Brumby for a recent conviction. It's far from impossible that this happened just as the child reported.

This should be escalated and investigated through the proper channels, please follow the process in the safeguarding policy for reporting concerns about senior leaders.

Well that version, means they will appreciate being dressed appropriately for the weather as opposed to the boys appropriating their lack of clothes.

I tell my daughter who refuses to wear a coat to school, one day she will realise being warm is better then being fashionable.

@Beedeeoh it's difficult to believe because a HT making those remarks in front of students is so extraordinary and careless, why risk your career?
However, it's entirely possible that this man is so arrogant, and so ignorant of his Safeguarding and Child Protection duties that he would risk his career with very embarrassing and damaging situation like this.
So it needs to be reported, and I don't know why anyone would hesitate. It's not the 1980s.

They think it’s highly unlikely an adult man said to a bunch of 17 and 18 year olds that they would come to appreciate ‘scantily-clad’ women’s bodies one day.

But presumably this was a throwaway comment made up on the hop, so it's very possible he hadn't given it that depth of thought? I don't get the laser focus on semantics here.

... because he's a HT and cannot make "throwaway comments" to students in his care about young women he has observed.
No teacher could, actually.

Is this an independent school, by any chance, @hnwis ?

Pretty sure they've been appreciating "that" since they were about 12 or 13.

It sounds like a comment made in relation to something critical that went before. Did the sixth formers say something about the women first?

It’s nothing like a ‘laser focus on semantics’ to point out that no male teacher of teenagers is going to be labouring under the delusion that appreciating scantily-clad women is something that’s still in the future for 17 and 18 year olds.

Meaning it’s highly unlikely that the Head said those exact words, meaning it’s therefore possible the entire utterance was misheard/misunderstood.

Nope

Are you going to be able to provide us with any more details? When and where, what exactly was said, any other staff or student witnesses?

So, on a school trip to another country, last week. 2 young women wearing revealing clothes walked past HT & 2 6th formers. HT remarked as per original post. 2 boys are known for being particularly ‘geeky’ & quite innocent for their age according to my YP who was not there to hear the exchange personally but was told about it by the boys who cringed with embarrassment! Of course there could be space for exaggeration in the story but from my experience of the HT in question I can imagine it happened. And if it didn’t happen/ has been exaggerated then if word gets round amongst students (as it will) that this scenario happened, that’s not great for head’s general
reputation anyway is it?

It was pouring down yesterday here and there were girls in my son’s school with no coat or blazer, short short skirts and ankle socks - definitely not dressing for the weather.

It's not about "reputation". It's about whether this HT has acted inappropriately, with young people in their care, using sexist/misogynistic terms and not followed basic procedures as outlined above. If this happened as you claim it did, then you have to report this HT.
They have, at the very least, not adhered to Teaching Standards.

Wow, people are really tying themselves in knots trying to disprove this, aren’t they? You’d think the idea of a man making a throwaway misogynistic comment was unprecedented. I can completely believe this would happen, OP, especially if there were no other adults around and the two kids he said it to didn’t seem like the type to go shouting about it afterwards. Probably a clumsy attempt at male bonding. Ugh.

Also, what is your "experience of the HT in question"? Are there rumours, do you not like this person?

I'm not sure you can report something you have heard 3rd hand.

I find that on school trips abroad, some teaching staff, particularly around older pupils, do loosen up and you see their true side. And it isn't professional or pleasant.

This
I would leave it OP

Yes you can report it. To the chair of governors. I would.

Why didn't you report it when you first heard about it?

I wouldn’t be jeopardising someone’s reputation and career over something that I was told by someone who was told it by another person.

If this did happen, any report would be far more appropriate to come from the geeky kids parents.

This. I couldn't get worked up about it.

I’ve said it’s not my place to report - I was just coming on here to sense check my immediate reaction which was ‘ugh, that’s not on’ - I agree with pp that it probably was a clumsy attempt at male bonding/ relaxing out of professionalism on a school trip as that is my experience of this HT’s character.