Some 80 GCSE students in Cheshire have been banned from attending their own prom because they haven't met "certain standards" set by the school. Parents of the Winsford Academy pupils excluded from the event were notified via email.
The end of high school prom takes place on Thursday, June 30. To be able to attend, pupils had to meet a set of school standards throughout the year ranging from 'good attendance', 'punctuality' and 'positive attitudes to learning'.
Parents of the children who are not invited to the prom have arranged an alternative prom night for the children at the Nu Flava bar in Winsford. They have clubbed together to provide a disco and buffet with balloons, goodie bags and a flower wall, reports CheshireLive.
The average number of students in each year group is around 200. Mum Danielle Sendall, whose son Tyler Knight attends Winsford Academy, was shocked to find out he would not be allowed to go to the prom.
She said: "They're sitting their exams at the minute and we all got an email saying whether your child would be going to the prom or not, which came as a shock to a lot of parents to be honest. Tyler had time off due to injury as he suffers with a condition with his kneecap.
"Unfortunately for him that's not his fault. Then he also had pneumonia so he was off for a good couple of weeks with that. And then of course the children have not been in school because of Covid too. I’ve spoken to quite a lot of parents who have said ‘my daughter can't go because she's missed days and she's had a few lates’.
"Most of these parents have already paid for their friends to go together, already paid for their children's dresses and some kids' dresses are coming up to £400. Many parents will be paying on a monthly basis for the dresses." Danielle added: "You're excited. You're looking forward for your children. You know they've had nothing for two years."
Casey Wakefield is another pupil going to the alternative prom. Her mum Julie said: "She's been struggling in school. We only found out on May 18 that she's been excluded and with that she can’t go to the prom. I went in for a meeting as she's been struggling to deal with her uniform.
"She went in with socks on instead of tights and she’s been shouted at for not wearing the correct uniform. It was quite harsh. I went in and said: ‘You can't shout at children who are just walking into doing GCSEs'."
A statement provided by the school principal via the Fallibroome Trust said: "The school leadership and staff at The Winsford Academy work hard to set and maintain the highest standards across the school. It is common practice in many schools for students to have to meet certain standards to be able to attend the annual Prom and other school events.
"Earlier in the year, the Academy set out the standards that students needed to meet to attend the Prom with the priority on good attendance to school and lessons, punctuality to school and lessons and positive attitudes to learning in lessons. This was presented to Year 11 in school assemblies and has been communicated to parents through our weekly newsletter for several months.
"Parents have received two updates via a letter since February half term to let them know if their child was meeting the standards. Staff have also had regular conversations in school with students who were at risk of not meeting the standards. It was made clear to students and parents that the final decision would be made in May to give students as much chance as possible to meet the standards.
"The large majority of students in Year 11 met these standards consistently over the last few months and have been invited to the Prom."
