Is he being too strict?

He's a new head and the school is part of an academy chain, so he's probably under orders from the bosses.

The school I attended (a Scottish Academy) in the 40s and 50s, from P1 to Sixth Year, had an unenforced uniform which we wore on special occasions and could wear anything we wanted otherwise. I can't say it affected our academic or sporting prowess and our disciplinary record was impeccable (though we were under the threat of 'the belt'). QED

The school I attended in the 50s had a very strict uniform code. Prefects often did spot checks and sent anyone slightly deviating , home Summer uniform was worn on May1st. Winter October 1st. Anyone not wearing correct hat e.g., and seen in the town by a teacher or prefect had 100 lines.
Our parents' were proud that we went to that school and complied with all the rules and regulations. We were proud also.

I think that headmaster was right BUT you have to use a level on common sense as well.
It was always the same- in 1962-aged 11 -I was sent home from school in canvas plimsoles in a snowstorm for wearing the wrong shoes. My 'Clarkes Clophoppers' regulation shoes were at the shoe menders as they were letting in a bit of water & my mother had written a note explaining why I was in plain black shoes & that the regulation ones would be back 2 days later. The female deputy Head (vile woman!)decided that was not good enough & confiscated my shoes & told me to wear my plimsoles. She refused to give them back at the end of the day as I was 'still a representative of the school on my way home'. I had 2 long walks & a bus ride to get home.
Needless to say my fiesty Mother was at that school as soon as it opened the next day & gave the Deputy a piece of her mind & then some!!The Head Master got involved (nice man)& we got an abject apology but it shouldn't have been necessary & even if I wore plimsoles during the day I should have been given my shoes back to go home in. It ruined the plimsoles too so I had to have a new pair.I suppose these days it would have made the local paper.

I'd like to think there are no teachers like that woman in today's schools- she made my life hell( & I was a quiet, well behaved child in the main ) but Mum stood up to her every time.(I did dye my hair purple 2 years later but Mum agreed that suspension until the colour had faded was quiet acceptable)

I won a scholarship to a somewhat "posh" school and the whole uniform list for all the schools in Worcester had to be bought from an official school uniform department in an expensive department store. Our rules included no perms below the 6th Form, long hair (below collar) had to be tied or plaited back in "good schoolgirl style" and we wore our grey felt pudding basin with brim hats at all times when off school premises, including on way to and from school. No makeup or jewellery (watches permitted, but removed for sports.My only hassle is whether this school allows leeway for vegetarian/vegan pupils' shoes.

It's very easy for schools to spend more time nit picking about uniform and not enough on serious issues. They should choose their battles!

Suede is a luxury item - it scuffs easily and wear quickly,is not good in the rain, so why would you buy that material for school shoes? I agree with tanith; it's all about having a set of rules for school and learning that for the good of all you go along with them. There are always parents who just want to ignore the things they choose to - like uniform, paying for school trips, getting in on time etc. and then brag about it in the playground as if it makes them special. It certainly does, but not in the way they think!

I get the enforcement bit, but one pupil I saw elsewhere on the net had a pair of Clarks school shoes in leather in black, which only resembled trainers in some aspects of the shape, so looked fine to me. Also, I would carry my coat in my bag in some of the hot weather we have been having.

Years ago my DD was pulled up for wearing neat black jersey trousers which looked smart because they had a metal stud on the pockets, so the school said were jeans. There are a lot of grey areas, unfortunately. School attendance is compulsory, so I personally think the school needs to be outside of the grey areas before they should be allowed to deny a child a day's education. I am not a stroppy parent either, more an ex teacher,l ol.

I live not far and know that the schools in that area are the lowest performing in the whole country. The parents are generally not at all involved, except to badmouth the Head and the school itself. This is why the Head is hoping that by wearing uniform, he can start enforcing an ethos of discipline. Many of the children have chaotic lives, single parents, B&B, a lot of refugees and immigrants of all sorts. It is a difficult are to live in being one of the most deprived areas in the country.

I agree with the Head - he has given the parents the whole summer to get the uniform, he wants the children to be proud of their school and a place to improve themselves rather than it being a holding pen until they are old enough to go on the dole.

Having said that, many of the children are well dressed and have parents who are engaged. They are the ones who lose with all this kerfuffle.

I assume that, as the school is in Kent, it is effectively a secondary modern with the most able creamed off. I also read that about a third of the pupils are refugees, some of them unaccompanied minors. I agree with you, Mattie, it must be an extremely challenging school.

The Sutton Trust did a study on school uniform and concluded that it doesn't on its own improve a school's ethos and outcomes, but if introduced with a range of other measures, it does help to promote cohesion. Hopefully, the children of the engaged parents will gain in the long run, if the school improves.

How is it that many schools in Europe and elsewhere get by perfectly well without imposing a school uniform? I don't think French, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian and German, etc., schoolchildren are any more undisciplined, unmotivated or ill-educated than our own.

I can see that there is perhaps a case for having a very loose dress code for practical and health and safety reasons - e.g. no high heels, dangly earrings, etc., but otherwise I do think a lot of unnecessary conflict is caused by the insistence on sticking to some very rigid rules.

Can it be assumed that improvements in a school are solely down to the introduction of a strict uniform policy rather than the "other measures" that are also introduced? Some schools that have introduced a more rigid school uniform policy have not improved so it may be that the issue of uniforms is fairly superfluous.

I remember my school days and there were some really poor kids. Their parents struggled with buying uniform and shoes. When we had domestic science, some of the girls couldn't bring all the ingredients in.

I am so glad that most people are agreeing with the headmaster, could this be the beginning of better behaviour and more respect. I do hope so. A small thing but hopefully a start of something big

I agree with it if the children are wearing trainers or items of clothing obviously not part of the school uniform, but to make such a fuss about suede shoes is ludicrous.
Makes me laugh when they insist that children miss so much education if they take time off for a holiday, but it's ok if they are sent home because their shoes are made of the wrong material. Ridiculous!

My children were lucky enough to win assisted places at a private school. The school organised a second hand uniform shop where we kitted them all out for under a quarter the price of what they would have been new. Any grey trousers, socks and skirts were accepted, with blue blouses and shirts. The blazers and ties were the only items that had to come from the official supplier. A second hand shop is something that could easily be run by the parents, and the school would welcome it.

Uniform is great for team building and pride in the school. By the time they get to the mid teens you can ease off a bit, but still have rules on what is not appropriate.

Parents who set up to confront the school do their children no favours. If parents and teachers are at war, the child is confused and rebellious. If your child comes back and says something has happened in class that worries you, you have to support the school as far as the child is concerned. Book a private appointment and go and discuss it with the staff when your child is not present if you need to, but never criticise the school to your child.

Yes we can only buy from school uniform shop my grandaughter is in year 11 and all she needed was some new shirts 4 shirts were £69.Luckily blazer and skirts are ok.
School is very strict on uniform, and black shoes only we buy kickers she hates them but all the kids in school wear them or doc Martin shoes.

I am reliably informed that one school places a logo just below the waistband on skirts, so that the girls won't be able to turn the waistbands over, thus hiding the logo.

I find it shallow to equate smart uniform wearing with good behaviour. Too many examples of perfectly well behaved students making great progress who are not expected to look like soldiers on a passing out parade. Moderation in all things.

Me too, pen. Scruffiness or tidiness of attire or sticking to rules about unimportant things, like whether one's shoes are black or green, doesn't tell anyone anything about how good a student a person will be, nor how respectful to others they will be.

I mentioned this to DD this afternoon. She works full time and is the mum of 10 year old twin daughters who wear school uniform.

She reckons the mountain of washing is bad enough already - if they were able to choose what to wear to school each day it would be a nightmare! She hasn't got time in the mornings to sort out arguments and possibly unsuitable choices.

I agree there's no need for things like ties and blazers, but I think some form of uniform can be a good thing.

I agree, and so does Minibags, for what it's worth. Uniform takes the stress out of what to wear, to some extent. She still has a lot more choice than I had.

But the issue isn't about the basic argument in favour of uniform. It's about fussing over little bits of uniform, leather or leather-look shoes as opposed to trainers; black tights as opposed to black leggings, etc.

Suspending kids over such trivia is ridiculous.

At the school where I am governor, the children do not have to wear uniform, but there are sensible and safe rules about dress, especially for the outdoor lessons, of which there are many.

There is a school T-shirt and sweatshirt and they are asked to wear those when there is a school activity in some other venue - this is basically for safety reasons so that they can be identified and no-one gets lost.

But there would certainly be no fuss about shoe material.

The school is far too busy fostering a family environment and providing true education.

thatbags Penstemmon uniform is not just about general "good behaviour" although if it leads to that so much the better. Schools will also be passing on employability skills - something employers constantly ask for.

Learning to shout your mouth off because you don't agree with or are choosing not to comply with rules is not helping the children. Growing up to be a belligerent, foul-mouthed adult as I remember seeing on some of the reports when schools have been challenged is not helping the children. Being seen to not be able to be part of a team is not helping the children. Not understanding what is appropriate dress (even when you - the newest recruit do not agree that it is appropriate) is not helping the children. Showing poor interpersonal skills is not helping the children. Showing an inability to be flexible to suit to situation is not helping the children.

These parents are not helping their children.

Er... who said anything about shouting mouths off with regard to uniform, gg? Kids can rebel quietly, you know. Some do. And successfully at that.

At my elder DDs' school the uniform was black trousers/skirt, black sweatshirt, white shirt with a collar. DD2 never wore shirts with collars. She was never pulled up about it because in every respect she was a model pupil. She has been a model employee all her adult life too.

Equating what people wear with behaviour is ridiculous and probably because of underlying prejudice otherwise known as snobbery.

PS She had objected to collars all her life from being a very small child. It wasn't a new thing.