Boy wears skirt to school after teachers refuse to let male students wear shorts during hot weather

A pupil wore a skirt to school after teachers refused to let male students wear shorts when the hot weather hit 29C on Monday (June 26). Toby, 13, and a group of Year 8 boys at Farlingaye High School in Suffolk, wore shorts last week in protest but they were reprimanded for going against the school’s dress code.

They then launched a petition, which has since been signed by 710 people so far, including parents and the female students at the school. Toby said they decided to borrow a female classmate’s skirt on Monday as it was ‘technically not against the rules’ and wear it for the day to get his message across.

He said: “It’s really unfair because girls are allowed to wear trousers or skirts but boys have to wear trousers. We’ve all been sweltering hot. A group of boys in my year decided to come in with shorts to try and ease the heat a bit and get our point across.

“Some people got in trouble and we all got some warnings. We were annoyed but we were expecting it because it is still technically against the rules. So I asked my friend to lend me a skirt because I was still following the rules but getting my point across."

Toby said he changed into the skirt on the bus in the morning. He said some teachers questioned him and received some  "weird looks" but he managed to stay in the skirt for the entire school day.

His mum Sandy Page, a swimming teacher, said: "There’s a lot of support for it amongst the parents. The petition has been signed by a lot of parents and there’s been support on Facebook too.

"Most agree that when it’s too hot it’s ideal to have another option. They’re not asking to wear sports shorts. They only want to wear smart tailored shorts. The world is changing and there’s no reason why they shouldn’t be able to wear shorts."

A spokesperson from Farlingaye High School said: “Farlingaye High School has an established uniform protocol which is in line with other high schools. We review this protocol on a regular basis, and welcome the contributions to this process of our students, who are always entitled to express their views.

"We will consider any suggestions made by parents, carers or students, which can be given to the school using the established channels.”