What do you think is the ideal secondary school uniform?

[roisin]

Our school is in quite a difficult area and has a shirt/tie uniform, which I loathe. At any one time only about 5-10% of the students will be wearing it properly, and most of the rest look very scruffy with the tie so loose/low you can't even see it.

Even with yr7s it's a real struggle to get them to sort out their ties properly at the beginning of a lesson. (A few teachers bother, not many, and most give up the fight by the end of yr7.)

My opinion is it would be better not to have collars/ties if you're not going to insist on them being worn properly.

So what would be a better alternative?

I haven't forgotten the private schools, I just didn't mention them! True, though the uniforms of that one are a bit Neighbours.

Go on then, gaussgirl. Explain what certain 'social' circumstances are.

my kids display their creativity through their tie... yes make your own judgements

my kids school is v strict on ties and there is a 'must show 7 stripe' rule - they get detention a lot for uniform related offenses. which is a big fat waste of everyones time

i liken this to leaving a selection box on the floor then shouting at the dog who ate it - becuase you left it on the floor

best to pre-emt this kind of thing.

i do think shirts and ties - worn properly look nice.

but your average teen does thow their creativity through their ties , the maths 'n' schniz clearly not being satisfying enough clearly.

so practically speaking - like junior school - polo - round neck black or grey trousers.

there was some kind of 'vote' 2 years ago regarding uniform - blazers the school maintained in a totally non leading way were a great way of showing how far the school had come with its new status in the arts ( whatever that is i can't remember)

i have difficulty in beleiving parents really did vote to pay £40 for blazers over a few quid for jumpers.

but blazers it is. and i never wash them, and my kids ride bikes to school - and them you have to find a coat that goes over the blazer - then ds2 does some fancy trick and rips the blazer- then i refuse to pay for another and he looks like a vagabond yadd yadda every year.

ROFL at UQD's Academy Students.

Currently in our town all the secondary schools (6) have shirt & tie, only one (RC) has a blazer.

The three that are closing all have shirt/tie/jumper, so it would be a very brave move to turn away from that.

I take the point about polos though. I think ours look so smart in their summer polos, because they are only worn for one term, so they don't really get chance to get raggy or washed-out.

At my previous school the uniform was awtel, white shirt which was always grey from filth, black skirt or trousers , black skirt always too short or tight and trousers were often too long and dragging on the floor all ripped. Ties were never worn right, I seemed to spend every day dealing with a lazy fat tie. Blazers were always old and tatty.

At my new school uniform is enforced strictly, they have a policy of cracking down on the small things like uniform and we rarely deal with the big things.

They have a sweatshirt that has the school logo on (different colours for different houses) a stripy shirt, a tie (again different colours for different houses) and back trousers or skirt. We strictly enforce top button rule, I dont start teaching until every top button is done up and I rarely wait more than a few seconds.

All the schools in our area have kilts for the girls except ds's school which has just changed from a a line to a box pleat.

You can tell how good the school is by the length the kilts are worn. They go from one extreme to the other, best schools wear them down to their ankles and the less good schools tend to wear them short above the knee.
DS's school is a hugely improved school and one of the things they did was to stamp down on uniform. They have an expectations card, 3 marks in a week and they get detention.

The boys wear blue shirts , navy blazers and tie (I bought ds a jumper with logo but apparently the boys don't wear them

Girls wear open necked shirt, jumper or blazer.
Bought the blazer from m&s it cost £20 and washes and dry very easily.

LOL at less good schools wearing kilts 'short above the knee'.
How do you classify a school (mine) where some students wear skirts so short you can see their knickers?!

If you are going to have a uniform, it must be enforceable and you must enforce it.

I hate black uniforms with a vengeance - they look so cheap and nasty and they don't do anything at all for pasty/spotty teenagers with greasy hair. Grey or blue is more flattering to more skin tones IMO.

I also think uniforms need to be sufficiently distinct in their boy and girl version - a unisex uniform is asking for it to be adapted to be more flattering and less asexual.

some of them do wear them that short Roisina lot of them wear them well above the knee
as I said it's from one extreme to the other, as the "good schools" wear them down to their ankles. I suspect that's not quite regulation either.

One of our local schools has a sort of oatmeal coloured jumper that has to be the most hideous uniform I have ever seen. Clearly whoever designed it wanted all of the pupils to look ugly because it makes them all look dreadful. Perhaps the designer thought it would bring an end to snogging behind the bikesheds, as nobody can be fanciable in oatmeal?

My eldest wears a business suit to school, with the school sixth form tie. My next one wears a fairly basic uniform of charcoal grey trousers, white shirt, stripey school tie, and a harris tweed jacket. The tweed jacket is great because it doesn't have a school badge, so can be worn out of school if he needs something semi smart.

My DDs uniform is a distinctive blazer, burgundy skirt and jumper, pale blue open necked shirt. The older two have skirts, the younger one a pinafore. The girls' uniform is very smart because there are no exceptions to it, so truly a uniform.

Our secondary wear blazer/shirt/tie. Gnerally they look a mess. I think they'd be better wearing polo and sweatshirt. Also with a blazer they tend not to wear a coat so end up freezing/soaked. Maybe with a sweatshirt they'd wear a decent waterproof? Then again they probably wouldn't

Its funny to here all the complaints about uniform!
My son has recentley been allocated a secondary school which doesnt have a uniform and i am really upset about it.
The school i wanted him to go to wears a uniform and i think they all look really smart.
I had imagined my son on his first day of secondary school ready to go in his trousers and blazer,now he will be in his tracksuit and trainers!!! GREAT!!! lets just hope he doesnt start wearing his baseball cap perched high on his had. What do they call them?? Chavs.lol
so whether sloppy or not just be grateful they have a uniform. its better than anything goes.
The schools reason for no uniform is so each individual can express there individuality!!!BAH!!!
Oh and one last thing they call the teachers by there first names!!!!!!
As you can imagine im appealing.

The high school My DD's went to had polo shirts and sweat shirts which could be worn with black trousers or a black skirt. I found this uniform was good as it was east to care for and easy for my youngest to put on. She is dyspraxic and would not have been able to cope with a shirt and tie.

furbz - I presume your post is a joke? Shall I donate £1 to Comic Relief?

Seeker-Unfortunately,no,it isnt a joke.
I wish more than anything it was.

My previous school had awful uniform and we struggled to get them looking smart. When in my room their uniform was correct but knew as soon as they left it was a tip. I had a yeargroup photograph with them once and I thought I had them all looking smart but in the time it took me to go to my seat and the photographer to take the picture they all seemed to undo their buttons and get whet I what I call a nasty fat lazy tie. Part of our problem was that the intake of pupils came from such poor backgrounds their shirts would be too small, too big, grey, dirty, Blazers with holes in or the wrong size and trousers that were falling apart.

At my new school they have skirts/ trousers in black, a very smart blue and white striped shirt, a tie accoring to their house and a sweatshirt according to their house. Top butttons done up and ties neat. I do not start to teach until uniform is perfect I rarely have to wait more than a few seconds. The kids do all look very vert smart. Our strict uniform reflects the fact we are a very traditional strict school withh high standards.

I have worked in a school with no uniform policy

they looked awful & the girls were frequently sent home for dressing inappropiatly during the warmer months

wouldn't allow mine to go to a school with no uniform,simple as that.

What choice do i have if my appeal fails?
I also have my son on the waiting list for our school of preference.he is number 9 at present.I dont know if thats a good place to be in the list or not.I just have my fingers crossed.

The simpler the better there is then less to look messy

Trousers and a seat top and a puffer jacket to keep warm.

good luck fubz

Secondary schools in Continental Europe don't have uniforms and their academic standards are higher than this country. Uniform is just one of those things that people latch on to - as if somehow the posher and more elaborate the uniform the better "Eton wear frock coats and top hats and is a brilliant school - this school has a fancy uniform so it must be a good school too"

Thanks for the luck mabs.

I know uniform shouldnt matter but i feel i want my son to focus on his work and not where his friends got there latest trainers and tracksuits. if all the children are in uniform then this wouldnt be an issue.
Thankyou anyway seeker your words have made things seem better.

at my kids school - ties must have 7 stripes showing or detention.

shit
you
not