Haircut banned from school....

Sorry, you can't come to school like THAT: Haircut that was 'too extreme' for the classroom

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 6:53 PM on 5th February 2011

A schoolboy's hairstyle has landed him in trouble at school after it was deemed 'too extreme' for the classroom.

Ten-year-old Thomas Miller could soon be forced get rid of the patterns shaved onto his scalp despite having had the same style for six years. 

The boy, a pupil at Meadowfield Middle School, in Bedlington, Northumberland, was sent home by his headteacher, to the horror of his parents Lindsay and Lee. 

Thomas's dad, Lee: 'To me, too extreme means lots of colours or something, not a few squiggles.'

He's been told he can't go back to class until he shaved his mop off or waited for the patterns to grow out. 

But Thomas's parents were left outraged by the decision and have made their feelings known to the school. 

Father Lee, 36, of Briardale, in Bedlington, said: 'We're both absolutely furious. We just cannot understand it, how on earth are a few squiggles on the side of his head 'too extreme? 

'He's had the exact same haircut since he was four and we have never had any problems before. 

'The school is now saying he can't go back to class unless we shave his whole head or wait for the patterns to grow out. 

'To me, 'too extreme' means lots of colours or something, not a few squiggles.

'Thomas went to school as normal on Monday and, at 10am, we got a phone call to say we had to go and pick him up. 

'We were flabbergasted when they said they were sending him home because of his hair. 

'The head reckoned he’s sent letters out to us warning us of Thomas's hair but we haven’t seen any. 

'We asked to look at copies but they didn't have them. We don't know what we're going to do yet but I don't want to shave his hair off. Yet he's going to miss quite a bit of school if we wait for it to grow back.

'We are definitely thinking about making a formal complaint. It's just ridiculous.'

Mum-of-three Lindsay, 28, added: 'The patterns shaved in his head are really very short and there is no way we could shave the whole of his head that length, particularly not in this cold weather.' 

After talks with the headteacher, Thomas was finally allowed back to school, on the provision he had to grow-out his hairstyle and not cut it back in. 

Lindsay said: 'He's gutted. He's had it done every month since he was four.

'We wouldn't have minded so much if we'd had some kind of warning but this has
come totally out of the blue. 

'Now, we've been told and we're aware, we’ll grow it out.  We just think it's a bit unfair the way he has been treated.'

A spokesman for Northumberland County Council said: 'The advice which the council gives to schools is that they should follow national guidance, which is "pupils should not be excluded for breaches of school uniform rules or rules on appearance (for example, relating to jewellery, body- piercing, hairstyles etc) except where these are persistent and in open defiance of such rules".

'Pupils may be sent home, their parents first having been contacted, to change clothes without being excluded; this should be for no longer than is necessary.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1354028/Parents-anger-schools-decision-send-boy-home-haircut-extreme.html#ixzz1DBW8rgXM