Should I raise this with School?

[Paraballa]

My Dd is year 6, so kids aged 10/11. They have a trip to the local hospital coming up where they will learn about first aid and practice the recovery position, using a defibrillator, etc.

School has explicitly said that skirts are not to be worn as they're unsuitable for role play on the floor.

I am about this as I've worn skirts for similar courses and not had a practical issue, plus I feel like they're being rather pearl-clutchy about the possibility of a quick flash of knickers from little girls in front of their peers.

I'm tempted to email school about it as they say if skirts are worn the girls can't take part.

DD currently only has skirts. I can buy School trousers, she wants some anyway, but I'm not happy at the general message being sent out.

I wasn't sure if this was the right forum but it feels like a feminist issue to me.

I have sympathy with you on this. Our school banned cartwheels unless shorts were worn. I think there is a great deal of pearl clutching about small girls pants being seen when they are climbing, playing, etc, etc. However at 10/11 I can see how it might be more appropriate for trousers/leggings to be worn.

I would agree that a skirt is not suitable for doing floor CPR etc. Couldn't imaging doing that type of course in restrictive skirt.

Sounds practical to me as they will probably be rolling around on the floor doing demonstrations. Does she have any leggings you could send her in? Or stick her PE shorts under her skirt. I am a feminist but this is not something I would have a problem with. 10 and 11 year old girls don't want to flash their knickers in front of their peers and strangers.

Her skirts aren't restrictive. They are knee length and fully pleated so allow for lots of movement.

I've done similar courses in tighter skirts and had no problem. Plus, in an emergency situation which they're training for, you'd do it whatever you were wearing.

I think it's unnecessary sexualisation and restrictions on girls, even before you consider that some families may not have trousers and may not be able to buy them at short notice due to finances.

It's direct discrimination against girls who have standard uniform but who've not till now chosen the trouser option, whose family can't afford to buy them for one specific occasion.

It seems a bit excessive but to be honest, not sure if it's really worth making a fuss over. I'd guess the school are trying to suggest something to ensure the kids are suitably dressed for the activities planned. Could she wear leggings instead?

The skirt described sounds perfectly fine for this activity to me.

I presume the posters who think it is innapropriate for girls to wear skirts to do this will think it inappropriate inappropriate for nurses to administer CPR whilst in their uniform? I would have a problem with this OP. If they think their uniform is unsuitable for girls to be active in then why do they have that uniform?

Nurses wear dresses and manage just fine.

I have run similar courses and always put in the blurb ‘... please wear suitable clothing for the practical sessions which will involve kneeling etc on the floor’. Or words to that effect.

Seeing as there's already a serious issue with people being too scared to do CPR on women, surely they should be encouraging all the girls to wear skirts on that day. A valuable opportunity to teach them that women lives should also be saved, even if they're wearing a skirt.

I recently undertook a first aid refresher course and the trainer said the success rate for saving a man's life from first response first aid was greater than for a woman. This is because people won't hesitate to "man handle" (can't think of a better phrase!) a man, expose a chest/apply more pressure etc than a woman. I had never thought about that but this is another example of that mind set.
Personally I think it would be better for the girls to wear what they normally wear and the trainer use the practicalities (or otherwise) of clothing to reflect the reality of the situation. Nothing wrong with the trainer suggesting someone use their coat to provide warmth/modesty to the patient.

I would imagine that this is the recomendation from the course and will be as much about reducing potentially embarrassing situations where a skirt gets rucked up in front of classmates.
Whereas you would never think to send your child in with a skirt that would be inappropriate for these activities there will always be someparents who do. Some will truly believe that the clothes they have chosen are fine, be these mini skirts or floor length with trains (sight exageration). Some may lead ro embarrassing situations other may even be dangerous. A simple way to solve this is to say expected uniform for the day is xyz. I teach and the number of parents who send 5 year olds in with buttons, tights, pinafores skinny trousers etc on gym, swim days is mad. So many buses almost missed due to tights after swimming 😂

Very good point re their own uniform being unsuitable for activity, plus the nurses' uniforms.

I just feel that they're simply kneeling on a floor, or lying on a floor, and no knickers would normally show as a result of that, plus as an adult I haven't had this restriction placed on me at similar courses and wearing a skirt hasn't been an issue.

Add in short notice and the possibility that some parents can't afford to buy yet more uniform at this time of year and I think the school are wrong.

And don't get me started on the fact that there's no female CPR dummy. (Resuscitation Annie has a male body)

Took so long to type my post BtoB beat me to it 😁

Have cross posted with many good responses. Off to read and digest.

Do you have a sports uniform?

please can people not use the word 'flash' in these conversations? That word has a very specific connotation which I find really inappropriate. 'Glimpse' is better.

It sounds like this decision will discriminate against the girls who have skirts as part of their uniform and, as far as I'm concerned, it yet another reason why uniforms are so dumb.

And don't get me started on the fact that there's no female CPR dummy. (Resuscitation Annie has a male body)

I'm sure that in the dark ages, when I first did CPR at guides, we were guided where to press, in relation to the nipple now that I think about it.

How can that work with many women? My nipples are virtually in my armpits when I lie down these days!

I would say a skirt is generally fine, the only time I can think of the skirt exposing more than a girl would like is if they're being manouvered into the recovery position? Surely though, they could just warn that this is going to happen, and let individual girls decide how to deal with it - eg. wear trousers, wear shorts under a skirt (like gym knickers under my pleated hockey skirt at school)

Saying that their own school uniform isn't suitable for a non-specialist activity (ie. something that someone might have to do at any point in their day to day life) is rather damning I'd say

I've worked in a few places where skirts and bare legs are not allowed for H&S reasons (don't nurses have to wear tight with their dresses?). The shop I work now, I wear ankle grazer trousers, if I kneel on the floor my ankles get really itchy from either the dust or cleaning chemicals on the floor. I'd hate to be knelt on a hospital floor in a skirt, I have no worries that I would show any underwear, I just hate the thought of my skin being in contact with the floor.

I'm not at all disbelieving you, but what H&S reason could require tights?

What possible protection does a sheer bit of nylon give?

I've worked in places where tights were required in winter, but that was about smartness, not H&S.

jessica has a good point

Sports kit would probably be better all round

Ha! Turns out this question has already been asked on mumsnet (although not answered)

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/other_subjects/202032-in-my-ignorance-to-healthcare-establishment-procedures-i-have-no

This kind of thing really annoys me. If girls don't own trouser their parents will have to pay for them. Also it's teaching them to be ashamed of their own bodies. Also it seems to be suggesting that they shouldn't give CPR unless they're in trousers - so if they are in an emergency and in a skirt they just stand by?!?! I teach at a school with a pleated skirt and they're not restrictive at all - the skinny jeans the girls all wear on non-uniform days on the other hand... Most of the girls in them can't even sit on the floor!