Parents criticise school skirt ban that restricts girls' ‘femininity'
Newhouse Academy, in Greater Manchester, announced earlier this year that it would ban skirts.
Parents complained, and a consultation was held, but the school is going ahead with its trousers-only policy, despite the objections.
One parent told the Manchester Evening News that 'parents should challenge this ruling'.
The parent said: 'This ban disregards the female students and their right to express their femininity.
'Schoolgirls as young as 11 forced to wear trousers and look like a boy is not embracing the two genders equally.'
Another parent added she 'would never have considered this school' for her daughter, who starts in September, had she known about the change.
The school told families that from the autumn, both 'boys and girls will be expected to wear plain black school trousers' as it intends to 'move away from skirts being a part of the girls' uniform'.
It said: 'While there is no legal demand for us to consult on uniform changes, we wholly recognise that it is important that any such decisions are not made in isolation. We had a formal listening period that anyone was able to respond to.
'We have worked closely with the student council, staff have been given an opportunity to have their say and it has been discussed at the relevant levels in our governance structure.
'We even extended our original listening period to allow more parents to share their views. In fact, the type of trousers that students will wear has also been decided by the students themselves.
'We are sorry that a small number of people do not agree with this uniform change, but it is a decision that we have had significant support for. It is also something that has worked well at other schools.'
The move towards trousers for all students is not uncommon, and several other schools have faced backlash for the policy.
The Telegraph reported in 2019 that Priory School in Lewes, East Sussex, had introduced a similar change, requiring all students to wear trousers from Year 7 in order to create a gender-neutral uniform.
Similarly, Huttoft Primary and Nursery School in Lincolnshire removed a red gingham dress from its uniform, originally saying it was to create a gender-neutral uniform. Following a backlash, it claimed it was to 'reduce costs for parents'.
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