Sent a note with daughter and coat still got confiscated

[Lionness2020]

My daughter started in Year 7 BullersWood on Wed 6th Sept.
She came home after her first day excited to show me her new books and weekly planner. We sat down together to read through it, I had to sign parent/teacher contract and then we went on to read the school policies and rules.
Whilst reading I came to realize that now I need to buy my daughter a black coat! This isn't an issue....I will buy a black coat ( I just need some time to do this).
She left for school on Thursday with her current coat (purple I might add, I know its bright, but it was that or pink!) and I sent a note with her explaining the situation to giver to her teacher, my daughter got to the school gates and took her coat off and put it in her bag and never gave the note in I found out later that evening....my assumption here is that she was scared she may get disciplined or that it was a hot day and she didn't need a coat.
Come Friday morning, its raining and daughter decides she's going to wear the purple coat as it's waterproof (it was raining most of the day on Fri, I think i saw the sun come out around 3oClock), so again I wrote a note for her to hand to the teacher.
Now this is info I have managed to gather from my DD.......She was going into morning registration, as they were filing into class, the headteacher of Yr7 has stopped her about her coat (according to my daughter her office is opposite her form room). So, daughter says she has a note, hands it over, head of year reads it and say "how sweet, I will have to confiscate your coat and you can have it back at the end of the day, as it's breaking school rules".
I was absolutely astounded by this, I can't believe my daughter had no coat to wear during break/lunch on a cold/rainy day!
Where was the health, safety and well-being of my child?
Not a happy mum!
I will be making an appointment to see the headteacher.

Saying "how sweet" might have been unfortunate, but it is precisely what most would have thought. A note from mum regarding the neon green trainers or the forgotten homework is very much a primary school thing.

She will soon stop wearing any coat, let alone a purple one and be mortified by a mum note. I wouldn't make an appointment with the headteacher. You'll be told the rules apply to your DD as much as anybody else and that a note from you does not excuse her from following them.

I still don't understand why OP hadn't bought a black coat before term started. She must have read what the uniform requirements were before the child started school, but it seemed she only realised about the coat when reading about the policies on the 1st day of term.

Op hadn't read the uniform list. She went to the uniform shop and asked them to show her everything they had for the school. There isn't a regulation coat, so they didn't bring one out and op assumed she had everything she needed. People are expected to buy a black coat of their choice. Op is saying her dd shouldn't have suffered because of her mistake in not reading the uniform list and her dd should have been allowed to wear the purple coat until she'd got hold of a black coat.

Schools have rules. They have them for a reason. I'm surprised that the op is making such an issue about this. She should just accept that she made a mistake and apologise to the school for not preparing her dd with the correct uniform.

Schools have rules. They have them for a reason

Yes, mostly they are illogical and draconian reasons. What possible, sensible reason would a school have to demand that outdoor clothing, which is worn outside of the school building, be a certain colour?

Non-branded, I could understand the reasoning behind that, banning jackets I guess I kinda understand, I suppose some teens would be daft enough to wear a sleeveless bolero in mid-winter and then whine about being cold and wet but colour? Nope, sorry, I can't think of reason why the school would have this rule.

I'm happy to be corrected, if in fact, there is a sensible reason.

Two weeks into year 7, ds lost his (black) coat. He thought he had left it on the train, it actually reappeared in July

The only other option he had was bright orange coat. I sent a note, explaining lost coat and also that it would be replaced on Sat, but he needed to wear something as it was chucking it down with rain and he has to walk.

The head of year 7 stopped him. Not a uniform coat young man, don't want to see that coat again on Monday. (ds didn't bother to show him note)

Bought new coat and on Monday head of yead stopped him again and said - well done, you were told and took it on board.

That is how you deal with uniform violation in year 7.

(but black coats for kids is ridiculous, and you will have been sent a complete uniform list at some point, not school's fault you lost it)

When I was at school (old gimmer alert) we were told that, if we were wearing school uniform in or out of school, we were representing the school. Therefore we had to look neat and tidy, behave well, not eat or drink in public - ha ha! If we behaved badly, a member of the public would know which school we were from and could report us. If we'd been expected to wear a coat, no doubt it would have had to look the same across the board.

It doesn't matter what reason for the dark coat policy is. The fact is, it's a rule and it must have been written clearly on the uniform list. If the school allow purple coats one day, pink shoes the next and an orange backpack on another, where would be the limit?

As Davros said pupils in school uniform are representing their school when out in public. I can't understand the outrage expressed by some people about a school having the temerity to have a black coat as part of the uniform.

I can't understand the outrage expressed by some people about a school having the temerity to have a black coat as part of the uniform.

Same. I'm a teacher who couldn't care less what colour coat a child wears. But school rules saying a black coat from any shop you like is hardly uniform crime of the century.

People whine for this. But then they whine if it's single supplier. Then they'll be annoyed st any other element of uniform they happen to dislike.

OP I'm totally with you. When my daughter started college I received an email from her dean saying my daughter's shoes were not strictly uniform so she'd given her a uniform pass to show to any teacher who asked, and she explained the uniform code so we could get the right pair next time. It was a totally innocent mistake and actually my daughter was mortified and didn't want to wait until she needed new shoes to get the right ones, but the school did not punish or reprimand. I appreciate their flexibility and respectful attitude.

Maisypops
No uniform is the answer

My DC has to have a black coat with no markings. My other DC's school simply says black or dark. It pisses me off that DC1 can't even have a luminous stripe/reflector on the coat for when he gets the bus in the winter.

I had no idea secondary was so strict. Not just clothing but other stuff. Somebody forgot their PE socks for the very first yr7 lesson and got detention.

One of my DC said he lost a book today and is dreading going in tomorrow. How I miss primary!

'Somebody forgot their PE socks for the very first yr7 lesson and got detention.'

That's ridiculous! Very quick way to damage the relationship between school and home.

'One of my DC said he lost a book today and is dreading going in tomorrow. How I miss primary!'

Nobody should be made to dread school. But there is at least some logic about being strict over books (essential to learning, whereas uniform just isn't!)

itsbetterthanabox
Not all the time it wouldn't be.
I'm wary of anyone suggesting that just onr massive simple change solves everything, because it rarely does.

I taught in a school with no uniform and theu had a dress code. I liked it. Am I fully convinced that going that way would work straighy away in all schools? Not yet. Mainly because most parents who bitch and whine about reasonabke uniforms also tend yo be the people who would send their child in breaking the dress code or other rules they just dont like.

The initial issue in the UK isn't uniform, it's the attitude of a sizable minority to education and teachers.

The school with no uniform was also staff ajd students on first name terms as well. But when i was there I didn't have any low level disruption, students stood when staff entered etc. The attitude to education was some of the best I've seen. Non uniform would probably work in my current school, but wouldn't in others I've worked in.

OP have you now bought a black coat?

Maisy - I think the issue is that kids walking home in dark/dusk in winter in black coats is dangerous. Much better to have a coloured coat, so they can be seen.

In principle, I am fine with follwing school uniform, but I wish they would change this just for raod safetyl

Middle do they definitely mean they can't have a reflective stripe?

Just buy some reflective armbands or similar accessories to wear over the dark coat if you're worried about cars not seeing you. A purple coat won't be any more visible in the evening as a navy one anyway.

Just buy some reflective armbands

sorry gruffallo, I am just rolling about laughing at the idea that my teens will put reflective armbands on over their coat for safety reasons.

The whole discussion is probably pointless anyway, after all not many teens actually wear a coat.

Ok maybe not then . But surely a purple coat won't be much more visible than a navy one when it's dark outside....?

Are you mixing the op and the purple coat up with another poster who wants reflective stripes on a coat?

Maybe . Anyway, hope op got her dd a dark coat!

The op might have thought a purple coat would be more visible too but i can't be bothered to read back.

It was chucking it down with rain here a few days ago. All the secondary school kids I saw didn't have coats on, maybe holding a brolly or a bag over their head but that was it! Coats obviously not the done thing! I have a feeling after a while OPs daughter won't be wearing any coat, black, purple or whatever