Ayresome Primary School in Middlesbrough, England, has asked parents to get dressed before dropping their children off after noticing an increase in people arriving in dressing gowns, pyjamas, and slippers.
Headteacher Charlotte Haylock posted the ‘polite reminder’, which has now been removed, on Facebook:
“As a school, we encourage our children to be appropriately dressed at all times and we feel it is important for parents to do likewise.”
Some parents support the move saying they had had enough of it, saying that they are worried about children getting mistreated over what their parents wear, and may think it is ‘acceptable’ to go out in nightwear.
One father, who asked not to be named, spoke to Metro: “I’m absolutely sick of it. It’s not hard to get dressed in the morning. Imagine how much those kids are going to be ridiculed when they get into school. They don’t even put on a fresh pair to come and collect them. A lot of the parents are disgusted by it.”
Similarly, a mother named Aimee Baker, whose 17-year-old son previously attended the school told Metro that the issue has been ongoing for more than a decade: “They’re taking the kids to school in their pyjamas and coming back in the same ones. It’s embarrassing for the children. There’s no excuse you should get washed and dressed every morning.”
However, many didn’t support it and even shared their reasons on social media and mentioning that the supporters were ‘judgemental’ without knowing these parents’ circumstances.
Rob Abel said that the school should just ‘concentrate on educating children’: “Who does this headteacher think she is telling people how to dress?”
Natasha Davis said: “If people wanna wear the pjs to take there kids then they can, as long the kids getting to school thats what counts.”
The school, which has 678 children from 2 to 11 years old, has a strict dress code. If a child attends nursery, which includes children aged three and four, they are required to attend school in full uniform.