• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

News and entertainment worth sharing – York and North Yorkshire

  • News
  • Things to do
  • Radio
  • Vouchers
  • Categories
    • Business
  • More
    • Comments
    • Advertise
    • Contact us
City Cruises York

Parents and students rebel against ‘wrong and unacceptable’ school uniform policy

One of the protests against the Tadcaster Grammar School uniform policy
Friday 2 July, 2021 @ 6.42 pm News YorkMix
Share via...

Parents are battling with one of the region’s best-known schools over its ‘U-turn’ on uniforms.

Tadcaster Grammar School, which has 1,500 pupils aged 11-18 – including many from the west York area – has introduced a new school uniform.

When it was first mooted in 2019 parents said they were told the uniform would only be compulsory for the year seven students.

For the latest on this story see this YorkMix news link published on Monday 5 July

Related

Years above that could choose which uniform they wanted to wear.

“At that point, we asked our children what they wanted,” Emma Blackstone, who has a son in Year 10, told David Dunning on the YorkMix Radio Late Show.

“Many of them said they wanted to stay in the old legacy uniform. And so the parents then went and purchased that uniform to secure that for the remainder of their child’s time.”

A year later “Tadcaster then informed us actually the uniform will be compulsory for all students, regardless of year group, from September 2021.

“So essentially they were removing the choice that they gave to their students back in 2019, and forcing parents to basically buy twice in terms of the school uniform.”

‘Disproportionate and unreasonable’

More protesting students

Parents of Year 10s who will be entering their last school year in September have now grouped together to protest at the move.

They point out that, with exams, the youngsters will only wear the new uniforms for two terms.

“When the school reiterated the policy a few weeks ago the parents came together and said, ‘Actually, this is wrong, this is not acceptable’.

“We’ve come together as a collective now, because we’ve realised that there’s a real strength of feeling behind the objection to this.

YorkMix - advertise with us
YorkMix - advertise with us
YorkMix - advertise with us
YorkMix #ad

“Within the last sort of seven days, we’ve moved from a group of about ten parents to a group now of pushing on 120 parents who all have this very strong feeling, whose children all feel the same way.

“And we feel that Tadcaster needs to listen to the voice of their young people, they need to reflect and review on the policy which is disproportionate and unreasonable in the circumstances.”

A new uniform, including blazer, two shirts, jumper, Year 11 tie, and trousers or skirt costs nearly £90.

Emma said they put their objections in an email to the headteacher.

Trending

  1. Yellow thunderstorm warning for York and parts of North Yorkshire
  2. Large tree to be felled in York – Motorists asked for patience
  3. Dramatic pictures show roadside fire near York

“And the response came back to us on Wednesday, that the head of the school doesn’t accept that our approach is reasonable. The school doesn’t accept that it’s a major issue for parents or indeed for the young people.”

They have now escalated the issue to the school board of governors. Parents have also launched a petition against the decision, and are campaigning on social media with the hashtag #HearMyVoice.

What the school says

Head teacher at Tadcaster Grammar School Andrew Parkinson said: “Since 2019, Tadcaster Grammar School has been transitioning to a revised uniform. This uniform was designed and developed in consultation with the Student Council and Student Equality & Diversity Group.

“From September 2021, students in years 7-11 will be proudly wearing the new school uniform which represents another marker of the high standards the school personifies.

“Parents and carers continue to be offered assistance with the purchase of the small number of uniform items, if required, as well as recycling and re-use considerations being made for both legacy and revised uniform items.

“The school has also amended uniform expectations to remove the requirement to purchase some logoed items in favour of generic options such as trousers, skirts and PE kit that are widely available at any retail outlet. This has further lowered the overall price of the school uniform.”

“We are exceptionally proud of our students who continue to exemplify the core school values of ‘Ambition, Resilience, Responsibility and Respect’ despite the challenges of the pandemic.”

Footer

YorkMix
News 01904 848 766
Email YorkMix news »
5-6 King's Court, Shambles, York  YO1 7LD
YorkMix Radio
General enquiries 01904 375 029
Studio/competitions 01904 375 030
Email YorkMix Radio »
Selby Superbowl, Bawtry Road, Selby  YO8 8NA
YorkMix is a trading name of YorkMix Media Ltd
Registered in England
Company number: 07814727
VAT number: 154 0364 34
© York Sound Ltd

Copyright © 2022 YorkMix Media Ltd

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT