A secondary school in East Sussex has made their school uniform gender neutral. The secondary school in Lewes, The Priory, has swapped the school’s grey skirt for a pair of grey trousers.
The female students will now wear the same uniform as their male classmates. Priory Head Teacher, Tony Smith, hopes it will create a stronger sense of community at their school.
The school’s website states: "This uniform has been designed specifically in response to the many issues and suggestions raised by parents, students and school staff."
Many students believed that it was unfair that girls had to wear skirts. Mr Smith shared their concerns with the Brighton Argus newspaper, “Pupils have been saying, why do boys have to wear ties and girls don’t, and girls have a different uniform to boys.”
This movement aims to make students feel more included and celebrates diversity. The school wants transgender students to feel accepted.
“...We decided to have the same uniform for everybody from Year 7. Another issue was that we have a small but increasing number of transgender students, and therefore having the same uniform is important for them.”
People were also worried about the decency of the school skirt. The indecency of the skirt was brought to the school’s attention by many parents, so they hope this will help resolve that issue.
There has been mixed feedback surrounding the change of uniform.
Mermaids UK, which is a charity that supports transgender students, revealed that they were delighted with the news about gender neutral uniforms.
Susie Green, who is the Chief Executive of Mermaids UK, said, “Adding gender neutral uniforms is one of many simple ways that schools can help any pupils struggling with their gender in any way, plus sends a clear message of acceptance and inclusivity.”
The charity urges all schools to do whatever they can to celebrate diversity and to make all students feel comfortable.
A mother of a Priory school was not pleased with the announcement, saying that her daughter was proud of her gender, “My daughter said she has got a gender and it’s female, so being gender neutral when she has got a gender is a big deal for her, as she is proud to be a girl.”
Piers Morgan, who is a former student of the Priory in Lewes, also spoke out about the topic.
Piers, who is known for his diverse and controversial opinions stated: “It’s disappointing to see one of my old schools getting sucked into this gender neutrality nonsense, which is being driven by a tiny minority of people.”
