23 March 2023

Dear Parents and Carers

School Uniform

Dear Parents / Carers

Broughton High School has a strong community ethos and we encourage our students to respect this by following our school dress code.

During Covid mitigations our expectations regarding adherence to uniform were relaxed. We took a pragmatic approach to account for ventilation requirements, particularly over the colder months. It was not reasonable to expect students to wear full uniform in class when they are wearing several layers to stay warm.

Normal classroom conditions have returned and look as though they are here to stay. With this in mind we would ask all parents and carers to prepare for full adherence to the Broughton HS uniform from May onwards. Please bear this in mind when buying clothes for school.

Our dress code is designed to make life easy for parents and young people alike. It consists of:-

• White shirt/black shirt or blouse
• Red school tie
• Black trousers/skirt
• Black cardigan or jumper
• Black shoes
• Blazer - optional. Students in any year group can wear a blazer, which should be plain black. (We recommend polyester, which is easily washed.) Students who buy blazers can come to the School Office and receive a school badge to iron/stitch on.

These items are not gender specific.

We have found that the shirt and tie is the most affordable and flexible option for parents. All of our S1 students are provided with a tie by our Parent Council, free of charge.

Leggings, leisurewear, shorts and joggers are not permissible. However, in order to provide time for families to adapt to the return to full uniform, plain black leggings and joggers will be accepted until the summer break 2023. They will not be accepted from August 2023.

Our Sixth Year Leadership Team 2022.23 

Reasons for a school uniform

The reasons for asking students to wear school dress are as follows:-

• Identity - it is important that pupils feel a sense of identity and belonging. They are part of a community in secondary school.
• Relationships and Equity – Students will not be bullied or teased if they cannot afford to wear expensive branded clothing in the most fashionable styles. For this reason, we also ask parents to avoid buying school clothes with prominent branded logos.
• Security – through the wearing of school dress staff can readily identify anyone who should not be in the school grounds and buildings.
• Safety - some items of clothing, such as loose-fitting track suits are unsafe in Science and Technology areas.
• Economy - all items of school wear are reasonably priced and readily available in supermarkets and clothing retailers. The cost of black or white items is the same as other colours. The tie is provided free of charge in S1.
• Preparation for later life – wearing school dress requires self-discipline. In most workplaces there are certain expectations about dress.
• A mindset for learning - wearing uniform on school days sets the correct mindset at the start of the day.

Support with school uniform

Should a student arrive in school without full uniform they will be issued with relevant items by the school pastoral team, in exchange for their non-uniform clothing. The clothing will be exchanged again at the end of the school day. If a student refuses this exchange their parent/carer would be contacted and the student would go home to get changed.

The school does accept that there may be rare occasions where it is not possible for some students to be wearing school uniform. However, we do not consider it appropriate or necessary to regularly provide items of clothing simply because a student has not made enough effort to comply. We do assume parental support with this matter.

In the event of a student frequently coming to school without appropriate uniform parents/carers may be asked to attend a meeting with the Depute Head Teacher to discuss the situation.

Importantly, any parent or carer who requires financial assistance with the purchase of school uniform should contact their child's guidance teacher. Various types of support can be made available.

John J Wilson

Headteacher