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Written question asked by Barry Sheerman (Labour) on Friday, 27 June 2014, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 1 July 2014. It was answered by David Laws (Liberal Democrat) on Monday, 7 July 2014 on behalf of the Department for Education.

Schools: Uniforms

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance he gives to schools on steps they should take to inform students of their right to wear or not to wear religious clothing.

Answer

It is for the governing body of each school to set their own policies on school uniform and other matters of appearance. The Department for Education’s guidance to schools on school uniform recommends that, once this policy is decided, the governing body should describe its uniform or appearance policy clearly and ensure that parents are informed.

The uniform guidance reminds schools of their need to have full regard to their obligations under equalities law when setting and enforcing their school uniform policy. It also recommends that the governing body considers carefully any reasonable requests to vary their uniform policy to accommodate individual pupils’ beliefs.

The school uniform guidance is available at:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-uniform

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
202911; 584 c155W
Session
2014-15
Subjects
Schools Religious practice Uniforms
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk