| Parents | Our School Uniform

Our School Uniform

School uniform plays a valuable role in contributing to the ethos of the school and setting an appropriate tone. We place great emphasis on presentation at St Bede’s, and encourage children to present both their work and themselves completely. It is our policy that all children should wear school uniform when attending school, or when participating in a school organised event outside normal school hours.

Our current provider for uniform items is Tots to Teams (see link at end of page), although parents may wish to purchase non-embroidered items from other larger retailers if they wish to do so. We do not stock uniform.

A school uniform:

  • promotes a sense of pride in the school;
  • engenders a feeling of community and belonging;
  • is practical and smart;
  • identifies the children with the school;
  • is not distracting in class (as fashion clothes might be);
  • makes children feel equal to their peers in terms of appearance;
  • is regarded as suitable, and good value for money, by most parents;
  • has been designed with health and safety in mind.

School Uniform

Dress Code

  • Grey trousers/ pinafores/ skirts/ shorts (Not black)/skorts
  • Maroon school Sweatshirt/ cardigan with embroidered school logo is preferential although parents may buy plain maroon sweatshirts/cardigans from other retailers.
  • Blue/red gingham dress (Not pink).
  • Blue polo shirt or blouse tucked in
  • White/ grey/black socks and grey/black tights
  • Black shoes (No trainers). Velcro is preferable unless your child is able to tie their own shoelaces.
  • Flat black boots can be worn in the winter but must be tucked underneath their school trousers. No heels permitted.
  • During periods of wet/snowy weather, children may wish to come to and from school in wellington boots.
  • No fluorescent bobbles are permitted- school colour bobbles (red/blue/white) or a black bobble only, small plain hair slides or narrow hair bands in school colours.

PE Kit

  • A white school t-shirt with embroidered school logo is preferential (although a plain white t-shirt can be sourced from other retailers) and burgundy shorts.
  • Black or charcoal grey jogging bottoms
  • Trainers with non marking soles.
  • School coloured bobble; hair must be tied back for safety reasons.

Jewellery

  • On health and safety grounds we do not allow children to wear jewellery in our school. The exceptions to this rule are watches and a small object of religious significance such as a crucifix. We ask that children remove these items themselves for PE and games. School does not accept responsibility for damage to these items, or from injury that may arise from wearing them.

Haircuts and Styles

  • The school does not permit children to have extreme haircuts or similar styles that could serve as a distraction to other children. No hair dye/hair gel is permitted or any marks/lines cut into the hair. Hair should not be spiked for school. No shaved heads, unless for medical reasons.
  • In order that children are not distracted by their hair and to avoid contamination of headlice, long hair MUST be tied back.

Make Up

  • No make up is permitted under any circumstances. Any child wearing make up will be required to remove it.

Labels

  • All school uniform must be labelled, including coats. School bags only are to be used to transport items to school. Replacements can be purchased from the office.

The role of parents

  • We ask all parents who send their children to our school to support the school uniform policy. We believe that parents have a duty to send their children to school correctly dressed and ready for their daily schoolwork. Parents should ensure that their child has the correct uniform, and that it is clean and in good repair.
  • If any parent would like the school to modify the uniform policy, they should make representation, in the first instance, to the Headteacher. The school welcomes children from all backgrounds and faith communities. If there are serious reasons why parents want their child to wear clothes that differ from the school uniform policy, for example religious objections, the school will look sympathetically at such requests. Similarly, should an item of school uniform prove problematic for a pupil with special educational needs or disability, then parents are invited to draw this to the attention of the Headteacher. The school will not treat pupils with disabilities unfavourably.

The role of governors

  • The Governing Body of St Bede’s supports the head teacher in implementing the school uniform policy. It considers all representations from parents regarding this policy, and liaises with the head teacher to ensure that the policy is implemented fairly and with sensitivity.
  • It is the Governors’ responsibility to ensure that the school uniform meets all national regulations concerning equal opportunities, and that our school uniform policy is consistent with our policy on equal opportunities.
  • Governors ensure that the school uniform policy helps children to dress sensibly in clothing that is hardwearing, safe and practical.

Failure to comply with school uniform rules

  • We expect all children and families to adhere to this policy. If children fail to comply with the school uniform policy, the Head Teacher will speak to the child and ask them to wear the appropriate clothing the following day. The parent/carer will also be notified. If the correct uniform is still not worn the following day, the child may be asked to go home and return to school in the correct uniform. The absence will be recorded. If the child repeatedly infringes the school’s rules on uniform or appearance, this may be grounds for exclusion (a decision will be made by members of the Governing Body). Any exceptions a parent feels need to be made to this must be discussed with the headteacher.

Monitoring and review

When monitoring this policy, through its committee work, the Governing Body of St Bede’s will:

  • consider with the Head Teacher any requests from parents for individual children to have special dispensations
  • require the Head Teacher to report to the governors on the way the policy is being implemented.

How to Order

Please click on the Tots to Teams link to order any  school uniform. If you have any queries please contact the school office who will be happy to help.

Parents may wish to have items delivered to school to help reduce costs, however, please note that there are no deliveries during school holiday periods and we have no jurisdiction on how long suppliers take to get uniform to us. Please ensure you order early in the year to avoid delays!