Dress Code Policy

Date First Published September 2022

Version 1

Last Approved September 2022

Cycle Three yearly

Review date September 2025

Contents
1. Dress Code and Uniform Items ................................................................. 1
2. Non-Compliance ....................................................................................... 2
3. Cost Principles ......................................................................................... 3
4. School PE Kit Suppliers ............................................................................. 4
5. PE Kit Assistance ...................................................................................... 4
6. Labelling .................................................................................................. 5
7. Complaints and Challenges ....................................................................... 5
8. Equality ................................................................................................... 5
9. Monitoring and Evaluation ........................................................................ 6
10. Equality Impact Assessment .................................................................... 6
11. Uniform Assistance Application Form ......................................................... 7
1. Dress Code and PE Kit Items
Clothing
The dress code is as follows. Students should:

• take off hats and hoods inside the school building (not applicable to
headscarves) and remove coats in lessons and assemblies.
• cover up midriffs.
• ensure skirts and shorts are not excessively short.
• ensure underwear is not on show (e.g. no low cut or strappy tops, or low-
slung trousers).
• wear clothes free from explicit or offensive images or slogans (e.g.
swearing, images suggesting sexual activity).
• observe health and safety. There will be no excessive jewellery, large
dangling earrings, flip-flops and stiletto heels.
• protect themselves against extreme weather (e.g. by wearing a waterproof
coat and jumper in the winter, and using sun lotion and sunglasses as
appropriate outside in the summer). Sunglasses must not be worn inside
unless for medical reasons as agreed as part of a student’s individual
snapshot.

In some practical lessons (e.g. PE, technology, science, dance), health and
safety necessitates an enhanced dress code. Here, students may be requested
to remove jewellery (including body piercings other than ear studs) and tie
back hair.

Arrangements for PE and Dance

Your child will be expected to wear/bring:

• High Storrs logo black t-shirt (or a suitable black top that they can move
freely in for Dance)
• High Storrs logo black hoody or jumper
• Plain black shorts or tracksuit bottoms or sports leggings
• Indoor trainers and a change of footwear for outdoor lessons (which will
be football boots for many activities).
• For Dance, no socks or outdoor shoes are allowed in the Dance Studio.
• A plastic bag to store any wet/muddy clothing or footwear.

To support a speedy start to PE lessons we ask where possible for children to

come dressed in their PE kit and to bring a change of clothing to change out
of PE kit afterwards on relevant days.

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Optional Cost per item
Item or Branding How to acquire from school
required supplier
PE and Dance kit
Logo t-shirt available from
School logo
High Storrs logo school supplier (Branded
Required on right- £6.50 or £8.50
black t-shirt uniform). Either cotton or
hand side
performance material.
Available to purchase
from school supplier
High Storrs logo School logo £12.50
(Branded uniform) and
black jumper or Required on right- (Sweatshirt)
second hand from school
hoody hand side £14.50 (Hoody)
office. Sweatshirt or
Hoody available.
Prices start at
Plain black £4.50 via the
shorts or No school Available from school school supplier.
tracksuit Required branding supplier or from a variety Cost when
bottoms or required of sports retailers purchased
sports leggings elsewhere is up to
the individual.
No school Cost may vary
Available from a variety of
Indoor trainers Required branding depending on
retailers.
required place of purchase.
Cost may vary
depending on
No school place of purchase.
Football boots / Available from regular
Required branding Decathlon and
outdoor shoes retailers.
required Sports Direct offer
very good value
boots.

2. Non-Compliance

Staff members are required to discipline students for breaching this policy, in
accordance with the school’s Behaviour Policy. The following will take place:

• A Behaviour Incident will be logged on the student’s record on SIMS by the

member of staff
• Parents/carers will be contacted where persistent issues continue.
• Persistent issues will be responded to by the issuing of a dress code report
and further sanctions (e.g. not being allowed out at social times, being
collected from school by parents/carers)

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3. Cost Principles

At High Storrs, we have a branded PE kit, which is part of the dress code. The
school is committed to ensuring that this is affordable and accessible to all
students, and does not place an unreasonable financial burden on parents.
In accordance with the ‘School Admissions Code’, the Headteacher will ensure
that the school’s uniform policy does not discourage parents from applying for
a place for their child.
The school will assess the overall cost implications of its dress code policy
regularly, including prior to making any changes to the school uniform. When
evaluating whether costs are reasonable and proportionate, the school will
take into account the opinions and situations of:

• Economically disadvantaged parents.

• Parents with multiple children who are, or will be in the future, students at
the school.
• Parents of younger children, as they are likely to grow quickly and require
new sets of uniform more frequently.
• Parents of students with protected characteristics that may impact their
ability to access the uniform due to costs.
• Looked After Children and Previously Looked After Children.
• Children with Special Educational Needs.

The school will evaluate the cost of its uniform (i.e. PE kit at High Storrs)
based on the total of items that parents would need to purchase for a student,
rather than on the cost effectiveness of individual items.
The school keeps variations in kit for different groups of students to a
minimum to ensure that students can get the most wear out of their kit as
possible and that parents can pass some items down to younger siblings.
The school keeps branded kit items to a minimal level that is reasonable for all
members of the school community. The school defines a branded kit item as
any item of clothing that cannot be purchased at a range of retailers, including
by virtue of logos, colours, design and fabrics. Where the school decides to
require an item of branded clothing, it will conduct an assessment to ensure
prices are kept as low as possible, e.g. by offering sew- or iron-on logo
badges for jumpers that can be bought at retailers instead of requiring special
branded jumpers.
The school is committed to meeting the DfE’s recommendations on costs and
value for money. Every care is taken to ensure that our branded items are
affordable for all current and prospective students, and that the best value for
money is secured through reputable suppliers.
The school works with multiple suppliers to obtain the best value for money
possible. Any savings negotiated are passed to parents where possible and

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does not enter into exclusive single supplier contracts or cash-back
arrangements. More information on supplier processes can be found in the
‘School uniform supplier’ section of this policy.
The school will not amend uniform requirements regularly and will take the
views of parents and students into account when considering any changes to
school uniforms.

4. School PE Kit Suppliers

Our current school PE kit supplier for branded items is:

• Branded Uniform
• Enterprise works, Hunsley Street, Sheffield, S4 8DY
• 0114 244 4592
• [email protected]

Branded uniform is in attendance for purchasing at the Y6 open evening. PE

kit can also be purchased direct at www.branded-uniform.com or using the
link on the HSS website (Policies and forms; Buy your High Storrs PE kit here).
The school will ensure that a written contract is in place with the supplier for
branded items.
The school will re-tender the contract every five years, whether changes to
the PE uniform are made or not, in line with the statutory tendering and
procurement requirements. The governing board will be able to demonstrate
how uniform is procured at the best value for money. The Headteacher will
work to ensure that the items are procured as cheaply as possible without
compromising on the quality, e.g. by requesting standard-style items from the
supplier rather than more intricate and unique designs.
The school does not sign contracts with suppliers before requesting
visualisations of proposed uniform, as well as fabric samples.
Where the school is proposing to change suppliers, it will reach out to
suppliers by October in the determination year.

5. PE Kit Assistance

The school supports vulnerable families in meeting the costs of branded items.
The parents/carers of students who have been in receipt of FSM in the last six
years and those affected by extreme or difficult personal circumstances may
be considered for assistance from the Hardship Fund. To be eligible for
assistance the student must be on roll in Years 7 - 13 in the academic year in
which assistance is sought and have good attendance. Those who are
struggling with the cost of buying PE or Dance kit should contact the relevant

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Director of Key Stage (Lorena Levy, KS3, Tom Highnett, KS4, or Laura Newell,
KS5).
The school holds limited, second-hand items for children to access. Access to
these items is available upon request made to the Subject Lead for PE.
Opportunities are made during the year to access these items (e.g. Transition
Evening for new Y7 students, Termly pre-loved kit events). Parents are invited
to donate their child’s branded items when they no longer need it.

6. Labelling

All students’ clothing and footwear should ideally be clearly labelled with their
name.
Any lost clothing is be taken to the lost property box in the Student Reception.
All lost property is retained until the end of the term and is disposed of if it is
not collected within this time.

7. Complaints and Challenges

The school endeavours to resolve all dress code complaints and challenges
locally and informally, in accordance with the school’s Complaints Policy.
To make a complaint, parents should refer to the Complaints Policy and follow
the stipulations outlined.
When a complaint is received, the school will work with parents to arrive at a
mutually acceptable outcome.

8. Equality

The school takes its legal obligation to avoid discriminating against any
protected characteristic unlawfully very seriously, and aims to ensure that the
uniform policy is as inclusive as possible so that all students are supported to
access a school uniform which is comfortable, suitable for their needs, and
reflects who they are.
The school will work to ensure that the cost of branded items does not
disproportionately affect any students by ensuring that items for all genders
are as equal in price as possible and by adhering to the cost principles laid out
in section 3.
The school will ensure that parents and students are consulted over any
changes to school uniform, and that views and advice is sought specifically
from students, and parents of students, who:

• Are transgender, including non-binary students.

• Have SEND and/or sensory needs.

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• Are of a religious or cultural background that has dress requirements.

The school implements a gender-neutral uniform, meaning that students are

not required to wear specific items based on their gender, and may wear any
of the items listed in the Dress Code and Uniform Items section of this policy.
The school ensures that students who are required to follow certain dress
requirements, e.g. by virtue of their membership of a particular religious or
cultural group, are afforded flexibility to allow them to wear a uniform that
adheres to their requirements as far as possible. The school endeavours to
meet all requests for amendments to the dress code for these purposes;
however, will ensure that the needs and rights of individual students are
weighed against any health and safety concerns for the entire school
community.
Parents’ concerns and requests regarding religious clothing are dealt with on a
case-by-case basis by the Headteacher and governing board, and always in
accordance with the school’s Complaints Procedures Policy.
The school ensures that the needs of students with SEND and/or sensory
difficulties are considered in the dress code policy, e.g. ensuring soft, stretchy
fabrics and avoiding intricate buttons or hard seams.

9. Monitoring and Evaluation

This policy will be reviewed every three years, or in line with DfE Statutory
guidance. At every review, it will be approved by the Trust Board and Local
Governing Body.

10. Equality Impact Assessment

The Trust will carry out an Equality Impact Assessment in order to ensure
that policies, procedures and practices cater for individuals who share
protected characteristics in relation to the Equality Act 2010. The purpose of
these assessments is to ensure that policies, procedures and practices within
the organisation are fair to all. If unfairness is highlighted, the assessment
will also seek to show how this can be changed and, where it can’t be
changed, how it can be improved.

The Trust will monitor the impact of the policy to assess whether there is
evidence of a detrimental impact on anyone with a protected characteristic as
a result of the application of this policy. The assessment will include
consideration of adaptations or changes which can be made to address any
issues identified.

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11. Uniform Assistance Application Form

Children who attend High Storrs School are eligible for school PE Kit assistance as
part of the school hardship fund, if they have been in receipt of FSM in the last
six years and those affected by extreme or difficult, financial personal
circumstances. This scheme is open to children in Years 7 – 13. Details of what can
be provided and how the process works is provided below:
What can assistance be requested?
Assistance with the cost of school trips and visits
Assistance with the cost of one-off items/equipment
Assistance with any other essential costs

The application form for the school hardship fund can be found on the school
website here:
https://highstorrs.co.uk/download/5/6d1440901d963f736bbc18240a1215cc

What happens next?

• Applications should be returned to the Director of Key Stage (Lorena Levy, KS3,
Tom Highnett, KS4, or Laura Newell, KS5).
• Applications will be considered by the remissions panel who will refer to previous
assistance that the students have received, their individual circumstances and
their attendance levels.
• Parents/carers will receive a response in writing from the remissions panel
• If the parent/carer is unhappy with the decision of the panel they can appeal in
writing within 5 working days to the Headteacher. Should the parent/carer be
unhappy with the decision of the Headteacher they can appeal in writing to the
Chair of Governors within 5 working days. The Chair of Governors decision is
final.

How is it to be paid?
No money is to be paid directly to parents/carers. The order will be processed by the
school.

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