Equal Opportunities Committee

Meeting date: Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Official Report 414KB pdf

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Petition

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School Uniforms Policy (PE1411)

Item 2 is consideration of a petition. Petition PE1411, by Luca Scarabello, calls on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to reform school uniform policies by stopping gender-specific uniforms and changing the clothes that are worn for uniforms to garments that are more comfortable, less physically restrictive, and more affordable and practical.

Schools have a responsibility to comply with equalities legislation and to allow adjustments to school uniform to be made as needed. Local authorities are responsible for schools’ compliance with legislation.

We have two choices: we can close the petition or we can take another course of action of our choosing. I invite comments from members.

Is there any history of the Parliament discussing school uniforms? It is an issue that seems to have been on the agenda for a while—it has been discussed by schools and parents around the country for some time. It seems that the use of uniforms is increasing. Is there any history of the Parliament discussing the subject?

No. The only work that has been done is detailed in the papers. Awareness of the issue has gone up and down; it is an issue that has bubbled away. I am not sure that the guidance on uniforms has changed. If the Parliament has not looked at it, it will not have changed. It is down to local authorities to ensure compliance. Schools have a bit of flexibility.

I purposely went to Asda before I came here just to check the price of school uniforms. They are so cheap now compared with how much they used to cost. Headteachers say that school uniform makes it easy to distinguish between pupils who belong to their school and those who do not. I know that there are schools that have really pushed it in Kirkcaldy, especially in deprived areas. I am thinking of Kirkcaldy high school, in particular, where it has made a huge difference. It helps with accountability.

I will be open and honest: I am all in favour of school uniforms. They are probably the cheapest that they have ever been. Kids do not need to buy designer gear, so there is no pressure on parents.

Is it your view that we should close the petition?

16:00

Yes, please.

I do not have kids in school yet—the first one starts in August. I have been thinking about the issue as a parent but without the relevant experience so far. During my time in school, we had a school uniform. There was a degree of flexibility as to what we could and could not wear, but there was a core element of clothing that we had to wear. I did not mind that—it was fine.

I do not fully understand some comments in the petition. There are comments that uniforms can “cause great discomfort” and are “uncomfortable”. I do not understand that.

Is that for children who are on the autistic spectrum?

No. I know people who have children who are autistic, and I have every sympathy with them, as it is an extremely difficult condition to deal with.

I have tremendous sympathy with much of what the petitioner proposes, but the current flexibility that schools have has worked for a long period. I am not against changing things, but there is already a degree of flexibility across local authorities.

When I read the submissions, I was struck by the thread running through them all. Varying points are made in each of them, but the common thread running through them all is that they are broadly supportive of having a uniform. They accept that there is flexibility and a certain leeway and that there might be some cases in which a uniform is not the best option. Local authorities have flexibility to make adjustments. The Scottish Youth Parliament is broadly in favour of school uniforms. Although I am broadly sympathetic with the petitioner, the submissions kind of refute what the petition calls for.

I take the same view as David Torrance, Stuart McMillan and you, convener. The people who really benefit from school uniforms are the parents. David Torrance is right that the cost of a school uniform nowadays is significantly less, relatively speaking, than the cost of a traditional uniform used to be. I, too, was interested in the Scottish Youth Parliament survey, in which the majority of respondents favoured the option of having a school uniform. Uniforms are a help to parents, because they do not have to worry about their children being singled out for wearing different clothes, or about one child who wears designer labels or more expensive clothes. It is important to ensure that parents feel that their child can cope with the school environment and that it is positive for their child.

As David Torrance and Stuart McMillan suggested, the petitioner is to be commended for raising an interesting point and for using the procedures of the Parliament to allow that point to be aired and discussed, but I am of the view that the principle of school uniforms is sound. I am satisfied that there is enough flexibility in the system to allow particular situations and circumstances of an individual school pupil to be taken into account. There are adequate arrangements in place, so I support closing the petition.

On a personal level, I am not a supporter of uniforms. I do not recall that my children necessarily wore them, although I am sure that they did in primary. There is an element of choice. It is important that people are comfortable. I am swayed by the requirement to comply with the legislation on equality issues. It would be an ill-considered move if a school head made an issue of things that are not worth making an issue of. I favour closing the petition.

I, too, favour closing the petition. Unlike John Finnie, I am a big supporter of school uniforms. As we discussed with some of the young people who were at the committee earlier, a strict uniform policy is a great leveller in schools, especially when some families cannot afford the designer gear that children feel under pressure to wear. If everyone is dressed the same way, they can all get on with learning. I note the element in the petition about the gender issue with uniforms, but I feel that that is addressed by the Equality Act 2010 and the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s guidance on that act. As the issue is covered by the legislation and guidance, we should close the petition.

I agree. The committee’s decision is to close the petition.

That concludes the meeting. Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 19 June.

Meeting closed at 16:07.