Shall i ring Ofsted?

[JCrakers]

My son is 15yrs old and in September the school that he attends had a new uniform rule. He already had the logo tshirt and jumper but they had to have a certain trouser. So the option was buy black trousers from 1 shop...that was it!!! No other options, just the one place.

I went to the shop and the trousers were hideous, cheaply made and too high up the waist (Simon Cowell style..lol) so I took them back. I purchased a black chino style trouser and he's been wearing these since September. Smart, they fit properly and are comfortable.

Today they had a uniform check and he's been sent home with a letter saying that if he doesn't have correct trousers on tomorrow then he has to report to the Behavioural unit and according to my son will miss all his lessons....I'm so shocked and really fuming.
How can they make him miss lessons? He's in year 11 and doing his GCSE's soon. He works really hard although struggles and always has, he doesn't like school but has never skipped a day, doesn't smoke and is polite and they are pulling him up for wearing the wrong trousers.

They have an Ofsted rating of 'Needs Improvement' which it certainly does. I have someone ringing me tomorrow and I don't know if I can hold my tongue and be polite...im so mad!
Do you think Ofsted would be interested if I rang them and put a compliant in? Or do I just need to conform with these *##** trousers?

[shortstuff]

i called ofsted and apparently although they inspect schools that is all they do. School answers to d of e.

The order of dealing with school issues i was given is
raise a concern with the head in writing
If no joy then with governers
Then d of e
I was given their contact no of 0370 000 2288

Hth x

[JCrakers]

Thanks :thumbsup:

I've never had to complain before

[hectors house]

Maybe you should suggest that they concentrate on improving the standards of their education not what trousers the pupils are wearing, that's what Ofsted will be grading them on next time and the time after and the time after as if they are "requires improvement", Ofsted will be in every 6 months! So ask when Ofsted will be in next as you want to submit a letter for them. :thumbsup:

[Mouse]

I wouldn't complain to Oftsed.

Schools have rules and if you don't like them you should challenge them, not flout them then complain when you don't like the consequences. Did you contact school at any time to say why he wasn't wearing the correct trousers, or did you just send him in knowing they weren't the proper uniform?

Our school is quite strict on uniform. At the end of last term my son's school shoes split & I didn't want to buy any more when he only had a couple of weeks left. He wore plain black trainers, the closest things he had to school shoes. I wrote a letter explaining why he wasn't in proper school shoes. They were OK with it, but if they hadn't been, I'd have gone out and got him some new shoes.

In all fairness school aren't making him miss lessons - you are by not sending him in the correct school uniform.

I know my response won't be what you want to hear, but how often do we tell fellow childminders - your business, your rules - when parents disagree with one of our policies that they find unreasonable? School is no different. They have rules and just because you don't like them you can't ignore them.

[FloraDora]

It is so annoying when petty uniform rules are the way some high schools think the way out of notice to improve is!
This is the usual procedure: - have the discussion tomorrow and write everything down that is said. If you still want to complain then ask for / find their complaints policy/ proceedure which is usually 1. Make arrangements to speak to head teacher 2 . If still not happy, write an official letter of complaint to Governors - address it to chair and parent representatives - speak to parent reps that can speak on your behalf. If you are not happy with governors response then write to LEA. Unless it's an Acadamy then write to Dept of Education/ nicky Morgan who is responsible for Academies.

Hope it all resolves itself.

[JCrakers]

It is an academy. Thanks everyone, I will speak to the person in charge tomorrow. She sent me an email this afternoon telling me my son had been given a pass to go back into lessons today and he needs to go to the bsu tomorrow which is the behaviour unit. It sounds like if he doesn't get a pass tomorrow he wont be going to lessons.


I can understand how you feel mouse and I do understand the need for following rules but giving parents 1 choice of trouser and taking my son out of lessons isn't my idea of working with parents.
I feel bullied into buying the cheaply made and nasty unfitting trousers which weren't cheap. I could understand if I sent him in a pair of ripped fashion jeans. It took me ages to find a suitable pair with no detail, studs or coloured stitching. They are just a smart pair of black chino trousers.

I'll see what they say and might suggest they look at improving their education over being so pedantic over a pair of trousers.

[hectors house]

It is an academy. Thanks everyone, I will speak to the person in charge tomorrow. She sent me an email this afternoon telling me my son had been given a pass to go back into lessons today and he needs to go to the bsu tomorrow which is the behaviour unit. It sounds like if he doesn't get a pass tomorrow he wont be going to lessons.


I can understand how you feel mouse and I do understand the need for following rules but giving parents 1 choice of trouser and taking my son out of lessons isn't my idea of working with parents.
I feel bullied into buying the cheaply made and nasty unfitting trousers which weren't cheap. I could understand if I sent him in a pair of ripped fashion jeans. It took me ages to find a suitable pair with no detail, studs or coloured stitching. They are just a smart pair of black chino trousers.

I'll see what they say and might suggest they look at improving their education over being so pedantic over a pair of trousers.

My friend has similar problems with her son's school trousers, however he won't wear the normal trousers because he has Aspergers and doesn't like the feel of the normal school trousers - but school refused to back down, I think he now wears 2 pairs of trousers, his comfy ones in the material he can tolerate on the inside and the regulation school ones on the outside. Have your son's current trousers got a sheen to them as some Chinos do, as I know my daughter got told off for wearing these to school?

[FussyElmo]

My son is 15yrs old and in September the school that he attends had a new uniform rule. He already had the logo tshirt and jumper but they had to have a certain trouser. So the option was buy black trousers from 1 shop...that was it!!! No other options, just the one place.

I went to the shop and the trousers were hideous, cheaply made and too high up the waist (Simon Cowell style..lol) so I took them back. I purchased a black chino style trouser and he's been wearing these since September. Smart, they fit properly and are comfortable.

Today they had a uniform check and he's been sent home with a letter saying that if he doesn't have correct trousers on tomorrow then he has to report to the Behavioural unit and according to my son will miss all his lessons....I'm so shocked and really fuming.
How can they make him miss lessons? He's in year 11 and doing his GCSE's soon. He works really hard although struggles and always has, he doesn't like school but has never skipped a day, doesn't smoke and is polite and they are pulling him up for wearing the wrong trousers.

They have an Ofsted rating of 'Needs Improvement' which it certainly does. I have someone ringing me tomorrow and I don't know if I can hold my tongue and be polite...im so mad!
Do you think Ofsted would be interested if I rang them and put a compliant in? Or do I just need to conform with these *##** trousers?

In answer to your question - no ofsted are not going to be interested with your dispute over the school uniform. If anything they will probably support the school.

Is it worth your son being excluded from lessons over your dislike of a pair of trousers. I personally don't like any part of my children's uniform however that's the uniform so they wear it.

[JCrakers]

The trousers didn't fit.....as well as being awful

And I wasn't ringing Ofsted about the trousers...I was ringing them about him being punished by being taken out of lessons.

( I cant get the trousers until after xmas unless I book a day off work...what the **** am I supposed to do?) Give up work?

[Mouse]

The trousers didn't fit.....as well as being awful

And I wasn't ringing Ofsted about the trousers...I was ringing them about him being punished by being taken out of lessons.

( I cant get the trousers until after xmas unless I book a day off work...what the **** am I supposed to do?) Give up work?

Are there any other parents who feel the same as you and would join you in a campaign to get the uniform rule changed? It does seem odd that you are only allowed one specific pair of trousers. One style will not fit or suit every child, so there should be some compromise.

As for the punishment being exclusion from lessons, that's quite common in senior schools. There's not really a great deal else they can do.

I'm sure it won't come to you giving up work over a pair of trousers. Is the shop open at the weekend? Couldn't your son go and buy a pair of trousers himself? Have you tried phoning to see if they would take payment over the phone and post you a pair?

[JCrakers]

Spoke to school and they were fine about it. As long as he has some for January.

Sorry all.... I'm so stressed at the moment with work on top of Xmas, and other stuff I just blew up at the slightest thing.
I'm really not in a good place at the moment.

[sing-low]

Hugs for you. The run up to Christmas is really stressful and we've all had that 'just one more thing' straw that breaks the camel's back. Glad it is sorted, at least for now.

No need to apologise, that's one of the things I love about this Forum - that we can rant when we need to, in a safe place.

[Mouse]

Spoke to school and they were fine about it. As long as he has some for January.

Sorry all.... I'm so stressed at the moment with work on top of Xmas, and other stuff I just blew up at the slightest thing.
I'm really not in a good place at the moment.

Glad you've got it sorted.

Hopefully that's one less stress for you xx

:group hug:

[Maza]

Glad you got it sorted. Hope you are okay. x

[hectors house]

I wished my daughter's school had suggested a shop and a style of skirt for my daughter as what ever I bought always seemed to be wrong - I made sure they weren't too short or tight but then got told they were too shiny, too flouncy.

[k1rstie]

I wished my daughter's school had suggested a shop and a style of skirt for my daughter as what ever I bought always seemed to be wrong - I made sure they weren't too short or tight but then got told they were too shiny, too flouncy.

Our rule last year was that skirts needed to be 'nearer the knee than the thigh' This year they have defined it clearer to be ' needing to be a credit card width from the knee'.

[FloraDora]

Our rule last year was that skirts needed to be 'nearer the knee than the thigh' This year they have defined it clearer to be ' needing to be a credit card width from the knee'.


Glad you have reached a compromise Crackers with your son, Acadamy's are a law unto themselves - in an LEA school you are not allowed to stipulate only one supplier so this would never have happened. Perhaps you could research a local supplier of better quality trousers and get a group of parents to lobby the governors/ Acadamy chain to allow an alternative supplier?

On the credit card story : in 1968 - the era of mini skirts, my school used to do spot checks on length of skirt, you had to kneel down and your skirt had to touch the floor - so the criteria when when we bought a school skirt was its ' roll ability' . You bought it the length the school wanted but rolled it up so it was shorter, then rolled it down when checks were done! The rules of skirt lengths hardly alter!

[bunyip]

If they'd have excluded us from lessons for uniform code violations, I'd have turned up every day in a pink mohair wetsuit. :D As it was, I had to make an effort to get thrown out of each individual lesson, which meant coming up with different ways to wee-wee-off the teachers. :rolleyes:

I recall my mum being in a parents' campaign against the head of my infant/junior school. there wasn't a full uniform, but the boys were forced to wear shorts all year round, even if the snow was coming over the tops of our socks - and we had to arrive in shorts: no turning up in long trousers and changing into shorts when indoors. :cold: Mum always said the hardest thing was opposition from the parents who'd followed the policy like sheep. Having gone out and bought a load of shorts, they seemed to resent the cost of switching to sensible long trousers, even if it stopped their sons getting cold.

I resent the dictatorial attitude of some schools these days. I know some are up against it, having lost a lot of options in the sense of disciplining, etc. and need to maintain control, but some seem determined to engage in a power-struggle with parents for the sheer sake of it, as if this represented a legitimate way to re-assert their authority.

Our village school has a bit of a revolution on the go with the reception class parents. More than most years, they're quickly working out the difference between a truly outstanding school and one that, whilst good, has a smarmy headteacher who knows how to set the place up for inspection and tick all Ofsted's boxes. The matter came to a head over PE/games kits. In order to ensure no child's kit is missing, they are only allowed to take them home at the end of each term/half-term. :eek: The fact this puts children in kits which stink of rancid sweat, having not been washed for 6-7 weeks seems not to bother the school. Mums are up in arms cos their children's trainers (seldom a cheap item) cannot be worn at weekends, so they only get used a dozen times before needing to be replaced as little feet get bigger. One of my schoolies forgot to take his kit home at half-term, so mum and dad had to go and buy new kit: otherwise he'd have been running about in the same clothes from September 'til Christmas. :p Parents have complained, only to be referred to their 'Parent - School Contracts'. I've always hated those things and now, more than ever, it is clear these 'agreements' are abused. However sweet and 'positive' the wording, they're just an on-paper way of saying "families will do what they're told, and school will do whatever it pleases." :mad:

The interesting thing with this one is that the oh-so-charming head has a group of parents to face down, when she normally works by isolating individuals to "divide and rule". Her usual charm isn't buttering too many parsnips this time around and she doesn't want a rumpus in this, her final year before retirement, as she's clearly hoping to pick up an OBE "for services to the oppression of families" or something like that. :rolleyes:

[ziggy]

Back in the olden days of the 70's when platform shoes were the fashion:blush::blush::blush:, 4 classes of girls (about 120) were due to go on a visit to a museum. Due to the flooring the headmistress said platform shoes wouldnt be allowed. Only girls in flat shoes were to be in the hall ready to go at 9am the next day,.

The next day only ONE girl was waiting alone in her sensible flat outdoor shoes (we all had sensible flat indoor shoes back in those days) The headmistress looked rather embarrassed and had to back down:laughing::laughing::laughing:

To be totally honest, if I was in this situation (and i can see where you are coming from) I would have gone to talk to someone at the school a long time ago rather than send child in and hope for the best.

Glad it is sorted now

[funemnx]

Glad it's all sorted now - this has reminded me also of the 70's and the differences in schools now. We had school uniform which we had to wear - straw boaters in the summer with elastic under the chin that strangled and felt ones in the winter which didn't keep your ears warm. Hockey in minus degrees in socks and PE skirts bare legs going blue (we had to play in all weather). Playtime outside in all weather - no indoors if it drizzles for us. And plimsoles which we all wore regardless for all PE related activities, even long distance running in the dead of winter (at least they were cheap). Children these days don't know they're born! :laughing:

[clareelizabeth1]

When u was in high school 12 years ago my uniform was very strict. We were never aloud to take our Blazers off. Our tie had to be long enough to tuck into our skirt or trousers. Only aloud black tights or white ankle socks no frills. Skirt had to be two inches from the ground when kneeling. Top button on shirt had to be done up T all times and shirt could never be untucked. Girls could wear a blouse in the summer term only. Hair bands had to be school colours. And there was only one shop we could but the uniform from which was only open Thursday's.

If we failed in this we had to go sit in the art cuboard for the day. I spent a lot of time in that art cupboard( it was more like a room but no windows and art supplies were kept in there) looking back it is really bad but back then it was just how life was.

[Mouse]

Things were definitely different when I was at school. I always used to get in trouble for wearing coloured socks instead of white ones :blush::laughing:

We weren't allowed to wear trousers - had to be skirts for girls, although I don't remember the length being checked. Where I lived we didn't have much of a choice when it came to clothes shopping and the internet hadn't been invented, so no hope of shopping online. We all went to the 'trendy' shop for school skirts, which actually meant we all had the same anyway :rolleyes:

[CSR2014]

Hi,
Glad this is (hopefully!) now sorted out!
Just going off on a tangent slightly - I recently watched a documentary called 'Ten years old and living in poverty' and it really upset me to see one mum struggling to find £180 for school uniform, she had to borrow it. Also, another child was distraught because of a non-uniform day at school. Poor kid had only old second hand clothes and felt terrible going into school as all her friends have the 'latest' fashions etc (the family couldn't afford new clothes). Really upset me to hear what these kids have to go through. What a society we are living in...told you it was going off on a tangent!!