School may ban girls wearing short skirts

GIRLS at a Calderdale school could be forced to wear trousers from September because of concerns over hemlines.

Hipperholme & Lightcliffe High School near Halifax says it may introduce a “trousers-only” policy from the start of the next school year after some pupils continued to ignore the guidelines.

One parent who didn’t want to be named said she had received a letter sent to parents which included the statement that:

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“In January, we are determined to tackle the issue of skirts that do not comply with our uniform policy. If students are inappropriately dressed, they may be sent home to change or be placed in isolation. This may result in a change in policy to trousers only from September 2012.”

She said: “At the start of the year the school carried out a consultation on whether to change the uniform to include a blazer, change to polo shirts or stick with the current shirt and jumper. No mention was made of banning skirts. Now though it seems they’re building up to doing exactly that.

“It’s just not right. Many girls prefer skirts to trousers and would be happy to wear them at a longer length.”

But chairman of governors Holly Bottomley said: “Some of the students are wearing shirts very short but there’s no intention of making them all wear trousers.

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“Any change would have to go through the compliance committee so it is a long way off.”

Head teacher Anthony Smith said: “There is no ban on skirts, it is simply just not the case – it is an option. This only involves a very small minority – some girls who were their skirts a little bit short and a little too tight – and is in line with what you would expect from a school of our size.”

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