Schoolgirls told by teacher knee-length M&S skirts were ‘DISTRACTING’

Deputy head tells schoolgirls, 15, their knee-length M&S skirts are ‘DISTRACTING’ and only suitable for ‘slender figures’ – before ordering them to cover up in shin-length garments he BOUGHT for them

  • EXCLUSIVE Ellie Porter-Smith and Jasmin Stacey, from Hampshire, were told their skirts were ‘inappropriate’ – because the girls were too ‘curvy’
  • School told mothers to buy new garments or the teens would be in detention
  • Ellie’s mother Gemma said the teenager is being ‘punished for being curvy’
  • She went shopping with teachers and girls tried on school skirts in front of them
  • Claims deputy head teacher also went shopping with his wife for new garments
  • Girls were told to cover up in ‘horrible’ knee-length skirts 
  • Pupils have been kept off school for 16 days following ongoing row 

Two 15-year-old schoolgirls have been left mortified after they were told their knee-length M&S skirts were too ‘distracting’ by their deputy head teacher – because of their ‘curvy’ figures.

Mother Gemma Porter, 35, from Totton, Hampshire, said her daughter Ellie and her friend Jasmin Stacey, were threatened with detention because their garments were said to be ‘too tight’ – and they were told to cover up in shin-length skirts.

The Co-op worker claims the pupils were being ‘punished for having curves’ by Hounsdown School’s headteacher Julie Turvey and deputy David Veal – who she claims said the skirts would be appropriate for pupils with ‘more slender figures’.

Mrs Porter said when she contacted the school after the girls were approached last week during the new term, she was told to buy a new skirt by the following morning, and if Ellie wore the same ‘inappropriate’ garment the following day, she would be placed in detention.

She revealed that after discussions with the school about the skirts – which were the same ones the girls had worn the term before – the mothers took their daughters shopping with their teachers, which was an ‘embarrassing’ experience for the teenage girls.

After the schoolgirls tried on eight ‘unsuitable’ garments, Mrs Porter claims deputy head Mr Veal and his wife went skirt shopping for them – and bought ‘horrible’ shin-length skirts made from a silky fabric that she said looked see-through in the light.

Mother Gemma Porter, 35, from Totton, Hampshire, said her daughter Ellie, left, and her friend Jasmin Stacey, were threatened with detention because their garments were said to be ‘too tight’ – and they were told to cover up in shin-length skirts. Pictured in the offending skirts

Mrs Porter said when she contacted the school after the girls were approached last week, she was told to buy a new skirt by the following morning, and if Ellie wore the same ‘inappropriate’ garment the following day, she would be placed in detention. Ellie, left, with Jasmin, right, wearing the skirts the school complained about 

The schoolgirls have now been kept off school for 16 days following the ongoing row. And Mrs Porter has received letters stating that clothes deemed suitable for one student may not be suitable for another.

Outraged, Mrs Porter’s sister Carly Hughes, from Gosport, took to Facebook to share photos of the two girls wearing their skirts – provoking outrage from other parents in a post that has had 11,000 reactions, 7,000 comments and 14,000 shares.


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In the post, Ms Hughes wrote that Ellie is ‘being punished for something out of her control, basically for being curvy and for skirts not fitting her body shape’. 

The post sparked outrage, with other mothers saying the school was being unreasonable. 

Mrs Porter said of her phone call to the school: ‘I asked who the skirt was distracting, but the teacher wouldn’t say.

‘I was just told that I had to get a new skirt by the morning or Ellie would be held in IE (internal exclusion).

‘Being punished for something that’s out of their control – their body shape – is not on. 

Outraged, Mrs Porter’s sister Carly Hughes, from Gosport, took to Facebook to share photos of the two girls wearing their skirts – provoking outrage from other parents in a post that has had 11,000 reactions, 7,000 comments and 14,000 shares


After the schoolgirls tried on eight ‘unsuitable’ garments, Mrs Porter claims deputy head Mr Veal and his wife went skirt shopping for them – and bought ‘horrible’ shin-length skirts made from a silky fabric that she said looked see-through in the light – pictured left and right

‘If they were put in IE, they would not be allowed to circulate in school and would have to be escorted to the toilet and to get their lunch. I decided I wasn’t having my daughter being punished for having curves.’

Mrs Porter then agreed to take the girls shopping to school outfitters School Kit – along with their teachers to ensure the right skirts were bought.

She said: ‘It was really embarrassing for the girls.

‘Standing there in the changing rooms in their pants in front of their teachers, trying on skirts.

‘Some of the skirts wouldn’t go up over their bums so the teacher insisted they pulled them on over their heads.

‘But some of the skirts wouldn’t go on that way either, basically because the skirts were the wrong shape for the girls. They felt totally humiliated.’

Mrs Porter said when she contacted the school after the girls were approached last week, she was told to buy a new skirt by the following morning, and if Ellie wore the same ‘inappropriate’ garment the following day, she would be placed in detention. Ellie has now been kept off school for 16 days. Pictured, a letter Mrs Porter has received from the school stating the same skirt that meets requirements on one pupil may not be suitable for another

Mrs Porter’s sister Carly Hughes wrote on Facebook Ellie is ‘being punished for something out of her control, basically for being curvy and for skirts not fitting her body shape’

Ellie and Jasmin’s mothers then bought ‘plain’ skirts from a clothes website for curvy girls.

However, when they wore them to school, the girls were told the small slit at the back of the skirt was against the rules. The mothers offered to sew them up, but the teachers insisted this wouldn’t help.

Mrs Porter said: ‘It was almost like the teachers were being deliberately difficult, like they were picking on the girls for no reason.

‘Mr Veal was very patronising. He said that our girls can’t wear the skirts as they’re too close-fitting on them.

‘He said it’s OK for girls with slender figures to wear the standard school skirt but it’s not OK for girls with curvy figures to wear it.’

At one point, Mrs Porter said Mr Veal and his wife went shopping to Debenhams to choose more suitable skirts.

Mrs Porter said: ‘The skirts were horrible. Shin-length, way below the knee, and made from a silky fabric so they were totally see-through with the light behind them!

‘If Ellie and Jasmin had to wear those, they’d be ridiculed and bullied. It made no sense: why were they having to wear these awful skirts and all the other girls in the school could wear the normal school skirts?’

Sixteen days after the families took their daughters out of school, and 16 skirts later (bought by the parents and the school), the girls’ parents decided to send them back.

The skirts they wore – jersey fabric, down to the knee and A-line in style – were checked by the teachers, using a special blue laminated ‘skirt rule’.

The teacher deemed them to be too short and both girls were separated from each other and the rest of the class.

Mrs Porter said: ‘Ellie texted me throughout the day. She was pretty much left alone all morning and was given very little work.

‘Jasmin was given a worksheet that she completed in five minutes.

Facebook outrage: Mrs Porter’s sister Carly Hughes shared this post Facebook along with three photos (posted below). She said the response from the school had been ‘all kinds of wrong’

Picture 1: Mrs Hughes shared this photo of Ellie, right, and Jasmin, left. She said the skirt is the same one they had worn before the summer holidays –  ‘they suggested her body shape had changed when questioned what they meant, they said her height?!’

Pictured 2: Mrs Hughes shared this image showing showing Ellie, left, and a different friend in the jumper wearing the same skirt from the school uniform department in Marks & Spencer yet she is allowed to wear hers because in their words ‘she has a more slender figure’

Picture 3: Mrs Hughes posted this photo of Ellie in her new skirt – however, she went back to school to be told it’s still not suitable, ‘she’s too curvy to wear them as they are a distraction’

‘Neither girls were allowed out for break and were escorted to the toilet and to get food at lunchtime. They were virtually held prisoner.’

Throughout the whole ordeal, the girls have had their confidence shattered.

Mrs Porter said: ‘Neither girl had body confidence issues before, but they have now.

‘They’ve been in tears, they think they’re fat and are feeling really bad about themselves.

‘Mr Veal has told us not to worry, that he’s booked both girls in for counselling for body confidence issues. He’s already made them appointments! It’s like some kind of sick joke. You just couldn’t make it up.’

Ellie’s aunt Carly Hughes’s Facebook post provoked outrage from other parents with 11,000 reactions, 7,000 comments and 14,000 shares

A spokesman for Hounsdown School said: ‘The school is unable to refer to or comment specifically about an individual student or complaint.

‘However, in the event that a student comes to school in uniform that does not meet the school’s uniform policy, as set and agreed by the governing body, then in the first instance the school will contact the family to request alternative uniform.

‘We believe our standard practice on these occasions is very supportive, asking for the uniform to be rectified within a time period.

‘We have, where needed, supported students and families to source appropriate uniform items for students even going to shops to get uniform to assist parents and students in meeting the school’s uniform policy.’ 

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