Last week the National Education Union openly criticised the trousers-only policy now in place at Hautlieu, Haute Vallée and Grainville, claiming that it is a new form of discrimination against women, who should be allowed to wear clothes that are worn in wider society.
The union’s feelings were largely echoed on social media, where the majority of Islanders commenting on the JEP’s coverage of the matter were also critical of the skirt bans.
So far no explanation has been provided by the schools as to why they adopted the policy, except for at Grainville where a States spokeswoman said that it was due to the ‘active curriculum’ and because trousers are more ‘comfortable and practical’ than skirts.
Senator Sarah Ferguson said that she is opposed to the ‘dictatorial approach’ of the ban and that skirts should be allowed, as long as suitable rules on length were applied.
‘At my school we were required to have the hems of skirts/gym tunics to be four inches from ground when kneeling,’ she said.
‘My school has now merged with a boys school. They have the option of wearing either skirts or trousers and they wear short, divided skirts for games.
‘What worries me with these dictatorial approaches is the extra expense to which parents are put. Seems to me that if the length of skirts is specified, they continue to offer the choice and preserve the decencies.’
Former teacher, author and JEP columnist Colin Lever said that he believed the skirt ban was ‘misguided’ and that while the wearing of skirts in schools could be problematic it did not justify a blanket ban. ‘You can see the practicalities of it. It solves issues such as up-skirting [taking pictures up girls’ skirts], skirts being too short, making it easier for transgender pupils or different sorts of misbehaviour,’ he said.
‘But really it is a case of misogyny. Girls should be able to wear skirts to celebrate their own gender. Just because people are doing things that are difficult to deal with, that is no reason for a total ban.
‘One solution could be the introduction of culottes, which are trousers that look like skirts. That is a possibility.’
