Brighton school bans children from wearing high street coats

Pupils have been told they must wear the school coat, or face the cold without one

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Children have been told they have to choose between wearing a coat approved by their school… or none at all.

Temperatures have been steadily dropping this winter, with the Met Office even issuing a yellow weather alert warning people in the UK to be wary of icy surfaces over the next few days.

However, for Patcham High School in Brighton, their students’ choice of attire appears to be of greater importance than their ability to fight the frost.

More than a thousand aged between 11 and 16 have been told that they must dish out £32 on a coat adorned with the school emblem or face heading outdoors without one, as reported by The Argus.

However, for many pupils and their families, they simply can’t afford it.

With Primark offering a variety of coats for as little as a third of the price, many believe it’s grossly unjust that the school has enforced this new rule.

A 40-year-old mother with two children at the school has spoken to The Argus about her disapproval of Patcham High School’s actions.

“I’m a complete supporter of school uniform policy, and I could understand if they were banning branded trousers, handbags or earrings, but the coat ban is ridiculous,” she said.

“If you go to the school at 2.50pm when they leave school, 90 per cent of the kids are not wearing a coat and it is freezing.”

While people have responded in outrage to the news on Twitter, headteacher John McKee has apparently defended his ruling.

“They are allowed to wear their coats to school, it is only when they are on the school grounds that they need to put their school coat on,” he explained to The Argus.

He said the school was trying to make the uniform "equitable" so that disadvantaged children didn't feel left out because they weren't wearing a designer label.

He added that Ofsted was happy with the move.

McKee has tried to make the point that the students can wear their own coat on their way to school and then change before passing the school gates.

However, this doesn’t negate the fact that they would still need to purchase the approved coat in order to avoid being penalised.

The Independent has contacted Patcham High School for further comment.