Exeter school’s uniform resolve melts after boys’ skirt protest

The US constitution has long guaranteed the right to bear arms – but now the schoolboys of Exeter have gone one better and won the right to bare legs.

Britain’s heatwave this week sparked open rebellion at Isca academy in Devon, with boys wearing skirts in protest at rules that insisted male pupils wear long trousers even as temperatures soared into the mid-30s.

By the end of the week the school’s icy resolve finally melted in the glare of international exposure.

The Exeter secondary school has announced that boys will soon be able to choose to wear shorts instead of its tartan trousers, after the “box-pleat rebellion” caught the attention of media around the world.

Aimee Mitchell, the school’s headteacher, sent a message to parents saying that shorts would be allowed – but only from next school year – after consulting with pupils and parents.

The school also confirmed that the boys involved in the protest would not be punished for wearing skirts.

“Parents and pupils will be aware that the hot weather these last few days has prompted interest in our school uniform policy, and notably the trousers, rather than shorts, worn by our male students,” the school noted wryly in a “hot weather and school uniform update” on its website.

“Contrary to news reports, we have not banned shorts; shorts are simply not part of our school uniform.

“However, as summers are becoming hotter, shorts will be introduced as part of our school uniform next year having first consulted with students and parents. We feel that introducing a change in uniform partway through this year would put undue pressure on some of our families.”

The uniform policy became a burning issue as summer warmed up, with the first rebels coming to school in shorts. When male pupils protested that the girls were allowed bare legs, the school said the boys were free to wear skirts if they chose – and so they did, after borrowing skirts from their sisters and female friends.

Ryan Lambeth, a year 10 pupil who was among the ringleaders, told the Exeter Express and Echo: “They kept telling us off for wearing shorts and I kept getting excluded. It happened three times.

“We kept talking about wearing skirts and on Tuesday I thought – right, I’m just going to do it. Then on Wednesday there were five of us. Today there were 50-plus people.”

Ryan’s mother, Claire Lambeth, told the Guardian this week: “He said it was unbearable. I spoke to a teacher to ask about shorts and she said it was school policy [that they could not be worn]. I did say this was exceptional weather, but they were having none of it.

“Ryan came up with the idea of wearing a skirt, so that evening we borrowed one. He wore it the next day – as did five other boys … I was very proud of Ryan. I think it was a great idea.”

As the revolution picked up momentum, the world’s media began to take interest. Devon county council staff were called in to help the school handle the flood of inquiries.

But a spokesperson for the school said it did make concessions to the blistering heat of the past week.

“Our summer uniform allows students not to wear their jumper or blazer. Also, recognising the recent temperatures, students have also been allowed not to wear ties, to have the top button on their shirts undone, and to wear their shirts untucked if they are feeling very hot,” the school said.

There is no evidence that the skirted rebellion has caught on outside Devon – many schools already allow shorts as a summer uniform option, while others have even more options.

Liam Collins, headteacher at Uplands community college in Wadhurst, East Sussex, said his school had a flexible uniform policy, with boys allowed to wear skirts and girls able to wear trousers.

“This was due to the work that we did with Educate & Celebrate [LGBT charity] and understanding that gender was on a spectrum,” said Collins.

“We did this work because we had a girl who wanted to change her gender and we were unsure how to support him. One of the things they suggested was taking the gender away from the uniform.

“So far no boy has decided to wear the skirt uniform but it is completely fine if they do.”