School uniform rule - girls not allowed trousers

[Fisharefriendsnotfood]

I'm wondering if I can call on the collective wisdom of you good people to help me construct my argument in the best way.

Dd (5) and yr 1 attends a local R.C primary school that I am more than happy with. She suffers from recurrent thrush and this year I noticed that when she wore tights under her pinafore it seemed to exasperate the problem. I checked the school prospectus for details because I have never seen a girl in trousers at the school and it states that girls must wear a pinafore or skirt as school uniform..

I then emailed the head and explained the issue and asked for clarification on the rules and she said that the last time the issue came before the chair of governors they decided not to introduce trousers as part of the girls uniform. She was very sympathetic and pleasant and said that if I got a doctors letter perhaps she.could allow it.

Now, there is no way dd would wear trousers if no one else was and I also feel that this would high light the issue / invite questions into something that is no one else's business.

So if you are still with me, I want to get the issue raised again with the chair of governors because I cannot think of any valid reason in this day and age why girls should not wear trousers if the want to. I have to speak at a parent voice meeting and if I can muster enough support the issue will be on the agenda of the next governors meeting where I can present my argument.

Where to start? Can anyone offer pointers?

Sorry for the essay

I really don't want to break the rule as I don't want to teach dd that if she disagrees with a rule she can just ignore it but I am determined to get the rule changed. I spoke to one of the chair of governors casually about it and he said "I suppose the want the girls to look like girls"

Sorry to be irrelevant, but I just read that in Ancient Roman times men didn't wear trousers because it was a coarse foreign fashion.

Just how traditional are we talking?

One argument can be that it's illegal to discriminate based on gender. I no longer get cheaper car insurance just because I'm a woman because it would be discriminatory.

In the same way it's discrimination to not allow girls the same freedom of movement as boys get in trousers.

They also insist the girls wear a tie, so surely that dissolves there point that they want girls to look like girls and boys to look like boys..

I don't think they can do that I would just send her in in trousers and if anyone says anything laugh and assume they are joking!!

I wouldn't personally send a 5yo into school in non-uniform as she will have to answer to teachers, other children etc as to why she is out of uniform and that I imagine would be pretty stressful for her.

solveproblem where religion is involved there are lots of "get outs" around equality legislation though, unfortunately.

NiceTabard, religion is not involved here though or have I missed something?

Are you in NI? There is a lady on Facebook in NI fighting this exact battle...

No not in N.I, Northern England. Religion maybe an issue as I mentioned it's an R.C school

solve it's an RC primary school

You could always say it's on religious grounds and then when they ask which religion you adhere to just say "the one where people get equal opportunities!"

I hated wearing tights and skirts as a girl, they always fall down and you are always worried about keeping your legs together! Boys can lounge about legs splayed - imagine if a girl did that in a skirt, they'd probably let'm wear trousers then!!

Oh whoops should have read OPs post first!

Well I think the lady posts under equality in schools NI or
Something similar and she is fighting this argument. Her school referenced air hostesses memorably as examples where girls needed to wear skirts.

My DD was the first girl in her high school to wear trousers; they were allowed but no one had worn them for years.
A few years on the skirt wearers are very much in the minority. I wouldn't worry too much about her being the only one.

I remember this issue going on when I was at school. I left in 1998. They eventually allowed them but they were navy with green stripes down the side and no one wanted to wear them cos they were so uncool.

Fish can i just say GRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrr on your behalf. I apologise for the shouting!

I'm just about to put DCs to bed, so will be back later.

In the meantime, what is the schools equal opportunity policy?

Rather than you needing to put a case forward in support of girls wearing trousers, can you turn this on its head, and ask the governors to put a case forward for girls not being allowed to wear trousers?

Incidentally, do any female members of staff wear trousers to school?

If the answer is "yes," maybe the governors ought to be thinking of explaining how they at can reconcile inflicting a dress code on female pupils that they wouldn't legally be allowed to inflict on female members of staff.

Ooh good call!

Are girls allowed to wear jogging pants during P.E.? Are boys? This could also be a discrepancy that they are unlikely to be able to justify.

I wasn't allowed to wear trousers at my primary or secondary school (both catholic school's) It used to bug me then. Girls used to think it was hilarious to pull each other's skirts up. (I did not think it was so funny!)

That was between 1991 - 2003 though, I'm not sure if the school's have changed now but I'd definitely want to write and complain about it now.

Another reason for allowing girls to wear trousers is that girls like to do handstands, headstands, and cartwheels (as do some boys.)

With the outdated uniform restrictions, if girls do play these games, it exposes their underwear (even tights are classed as underwear.)

If they suggest that it is inappropriate for girls to play these games, you could point out that it is only inappropriate because of the uniform rules. Why should a sexist uniform policy rule out such games?

Are the boys expected to refrain from any games so as not to show their underwear?

If its a state primary regardless of whether its a catholic school or not the uniform isn't enforceable. Tis certainly was the case when dd was at primary. You could send her in jeans if you wanted.

Sorry - got distracted. What I meant by the jogging pants is that I expect they are allowed to wear jogging bottoms in outdoor P.E. lessons, though I might be wrong.swim.

If girls are allowed to wear jogging pants during P.E. it seems farcical to not allow them to wear them when it's not P.E. iyswim.

Similarly, are girls allowed/expected even to wear shorts for P.E.?

If yes, again, where is the effing logic in that? Is it so as not to reveal underwear? Well then the same argument should apply at all times during the school day, surely.

Not enforceable no but don't think a lot of people would know that? I've just googled my old school's uniform policy and both say girls can only wear skirts or pinafores and summer are checked dresses!
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