Teacher bans 'unruly' hair even in holidays

The headteacher of a leading public school has complained about pupils' "unruly" hair and told parents to ban children from dyeing their hair over the holidays.

Alan Rogers, the headteacher of Wellington School in Somerset, used an end-of-term newsletter to tell parents not to forget the school's strict rules on pupils' hair even in the summer holidays.

But parents at the school, which boasts David Suchet, who played Poirot in the TV detective series, and the chef Keith Floyd, among its former pupils, have taken offence at the "discourteous" tone of the letter.

Mr Rogers' letter said "the general untidiness of students' hair" had worried him for some time and asked "parents not to allow their children to have their hair dyed these holidays, as it rarely grows out by the end of the holiday, and to return to school with such contravenes school rules".

But an unidentified parent told the Western Daily Press the letter had caused offence. "I agree people should look smart, but for many of the parents it is discourteous to talk down to us," the letter said.

Mr Rogers was unavailable for comment yesterday.