Parents of pupils at a Bristol school have slammed uniform rules forcing children to wear long trousers on the hottest day of the year. They are so concerned about their children in the hot weather that several have kept them home today.
Staff at Blaise High School in Henbury relaxed the uniform policy last week so children were not expected to wear blazers, jumpers and ties, and they have allowed pupils to wear their shirt collars open at the first button. But one worried mum, who was among several to contact Bristol Live, says the school is refusing to budge on letting pupils wear shorts.
Many schools - including Yate Academy, which like Blaise High School is also run by the Greenshaw Learning Trust - have relaxed the rules in the final days of the summer term and let pupils wear shorts or PE kits this week. Concerned parent Cheryl says the school has only ‘u-turned’ on her own son and allowed an exception due to an underlying health condition that makes him vulnerable to heat-related fainting, but she says several other parents refused to send their children into school today (Monday, July 18) in view of the heat.
READ MORE: Bristol schools stay open today but some parents keep children at home
She said: “It’s ridiculous, they are allowing no ties or blazers and one button undone but still insisting on trousers. Other Greenshaw Trust schools are allowing PE kit and one is even finishing early."
She claimed he collapsed at the school gym last year during hot weather, adding: "I am not risking another episode as he has heat syncope. Several [parents] won’t be sending the kids in because of it and a lot of parents are very unhappy.”
Another worried mum, who wanted to remain anonymous, says her son turned up in shorts but has had to ‘borrow’ a pair of long school trousers just to stay in school today. She told Bristol Live it was ‘the only option’.
She said: “The options for my son today were to stay in school and wear a pair of school trousers, stay in ‘pastoral services’ (a day-long detention) with no break or lunch outside the classroom, or be sent home with a laptop to do his school work on. We decided to suck it up and borrow school trousers for the day to prevent any more disruptions to his education.”
And the insistence that pupils wear long trousers isn’t the only heat-related problem the school has faced criticism for. One mum told Bristol Live that her Year 8 daughter returned home after last Thursday’s school sports day ‘sunburnt and miserable’ with a severe headache and nausea, which she believes was from dehydration.
She said: “On sports day, the students spent all day apart from lunch/break outside on the school fields. Only one small gazebo per year group was provided, for children who had just run a race.
"The others were left to stand around watching and no shade was available other than the gazebo. Teachers were also throwing away any water bottles left unattended.
“Many other parents in the group reported that their children had sunburn and were unhappy with how it was run. My daughter was ill all weekend and I won't risk her health again today and tomorrow.
“I’ve made the decision to keep her home for the next two days as I’m very unhappy with the school’s proposed adjustments - unbuttoning the top button of their shirt will make no difference. The school seems to care more about keeping up appearances than the wellbeing of the children.”
Another mum who contacted Bristol Live today said there are many parents who are ‘very concerned’ about the wellbeing of their children at the school. She said: “They are very proud of their strict regimes, but they are incredibly inconsistent and downright dismissive to people who dare voice their opinions.
"I do not have issues with following rules, I just think they take it too far in this particular school. I have researched other Greenshaw schools in our area who are experiencing the same heatwave, and their headteachers are allowing the pupils to wear their PE kits into school as it’s a lot cooler.
“They have a blanket rule here that boys must wear long black trousers regardless of weather. My son is not comfortable wearing a kilt to school, as the boys who do are bullied for it, so he has no option.
“The teachers can wear whatever makes them comfortable in both hot and cold weather. The school is full of double standards at every turn.
“It took this extreme weather before they allowed the removal of blazers outside but the teachers walk around in short sleeved shirts. Why are they not representing the school in a similar manner?
“I am truly concerned about the well being of the students here as they get punished for needing the toilet. My son was so terrified for the first two years that I had to go to see his GP in order to get him a toilet pass.
“He contracted a urinary infection by living in fear of needing to ask to use the toilet. Now when he needs the toilet he can show the toilet pass but this is still frowned upon as every second of every lesson needs to be spent facing forward listening to the teacher.”
Will Smith, CEO of the Greenshaw Learning Trust, said: “The students’ well-being and safety is our highest priority. If parents or students have concerns, please contact the school directly.”
Correspondence from the school, shared by parents, outlined several measures to keep pupils safe during the heatwave. On uniform, it stated: "Uniform expectations are changed.
"We do not expect students to wear blazers or jumpers. We also don't expect students to wear their ties and they may choose to wear their collars open at the first button."
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