Petition · past parliament
Stop prioritising female dress standards over their education.
Rejected
18 signatures
What the petition asks
Students face punishment for skirts that are not knee length, wearing trousers or skirts that are 'too tight' and wearing blouses that show their shoulders. They are given detentions, isolation and sent home as opposed to being in lessons. What a person wears does not affect their ability to learn.
The majority of students who are penalised for their clothing are female due to reasons such as 'it will distract male students.' Instead going to their lesson, many schools prioritise punishing the student for their uniform by keeping them out of lesson so they 'don't distract other learners'. It is understood that an aim of having uniform is professionalism but the pressures placed on young women to dress a certain way if they 'value their education' is unfair. It is often hard to find comfortable and fitting uniform within the school standards without paying high prices. It would be beneficial to young girls all to show them that what they wear is not more important than what they learn.
Why it was rejected
It asked for something that is not the responsibility of the UK Government or Parliament.
Decisions about school uniform are for a school's governing body and management to take.
You could ask your school's governing body to take the action you want to see in your school.
The Department for Education does produce guidance for schools:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/269113/school_uniform_guidance_2013.pdf
You could start a petition asking for the Government to change the guidance it gives to schools.
You could ask your school's governing body to take the action you want to see in your school.
The Department for Education does produce guidance for schools:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/269113/school_uniform_guidance_2013.pdf
You could start a petition asking for the Government to change the guidance it gives to schools.
Timeline
| 7 Sep 2016 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 9 Sep 2016 | Rejected by the Petitions Committee |
Key facts
Signatures
18
Status
Rejected
Rejected
9 Sep 2016
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.