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Shorts under skirts 'ban' at primary school leaves furious parents slamming 'wild' rule

Parents have hit out after a primary school reportedly banned girls from wearing shorts under their skirts and dresses as part of its summer uniform policy

[Parents have hit out after a primary school reportedly banned girls from wearing shorts under their skirts (file image)]

Parents have hit out after a primary school reportedly banned girls from wearing shorts under their skirts (file image)(Image: Getty Images)

A school has faced fierce criticism for reportedly stopping girls from wearing shorts beneath their skirts and dresses. The primary school, which hasn't been identified, has allegedly forbidden pupils from wearing cycling shorts or comparable items under their summer uniform.

A parent claims the school said it's "not proper" for children to put on additional layers, but parents consider them essential for safeguarding their child's dignity.

Taking to social media, the unnamed parent said: "I've got a meeting with the school soon so will ask then, but it's really bugging me and I wanted to see if I'm missing something obvious.

[The primary school has allegedly forbidden pupils from wearing cycling shorts or comparable items (file image)]

The primary school has allegedly forbidden pupils from wearing cycling shorts or comparable items (file image)(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

"My daughter is starting school this year, and we're getting all the details for reception through, including the uniform requirements.

"It's very explicit in all of the guides that cycling shorts etc worn under skirts or dresses are NOT permitted for the girls to wear.

"This seems kind of wild to me and I can't think of a sensible reason why that would be the case? Is it just because it's not "proper"? Anyone else have similar rules with their kids and know a legit reason?"

[A parent claims the school said it's "not proper" for children to put on additional layers (file image)]

A parent claims the school said it's "not proper" for children to put on additional layers (file image)(Image: Photo News via Getty Images)

The parent continued by describing how their four year old daughter's main focus at school would be learning through play, meaning she wouldn't be considering preserving her modesty while wearing a dress, reports the Mirror.

They said: "My four-year-old is not the best at protecting her modesty when she plays, bless her, and hey, why should she be? Enjoy yourself. But we tend to have a pair of shorts on under dresses for comfort and decency."

Responding to the post, one user said: "I have five girls, four of whom are school age. Our school does say that they shouldn't be visible to maintain uniformity, but they're not prohibiting them.

"We just use black ones to make them less obvious while playing, but personally I'd not feel comfortable sending my girls in just wearing knickers under their dress, especially not at that young an age. I'd talk to the school."

Another user said: "Having now had two daughters go through primary and into secondary, I would guess this rule has been made following some sort of fad for year 6 girls to have brightly coloured knee-length cycling shorts showing from under their dresses.

"Probably mixed in with some general year 6 girl end-of-summer-term cattiness for those not wearing them for good measure.

"I can't begin to imagine that a primary school is policing the little cycling shorts in a neutral colour everyone here is thinking of (round here they call them cartwheel or kick shorts).

"But I can imagine it's a great rule for when half of year 6 yet again turn up in bright pink Nike Pro or Lululemon cycling shorts or cropped leggings and take the mick out of little Milly for not having them. I might be wrong, but it's definitely the vibe I'm getting."

A third user added: "They tried to police girls wearing shorts under their skirts when I was in primary school. My mum just asked the deputy headmaster who was pushing this, 'How do you know what the girls are wearing under their skirts?' and it suddenly wasn't a problem anymore."

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