A Nottingham mum made a complaint to her son's school after he was put in isolation for wearing trainers. Hayley Birtley said her 12-year-old son, Matteo, was dealt the punishment by Nottingham Academy in Sneinton on Tuesday, March 14 after refusing to try on a spare pair of school shoes.
The 38 year old said her son, who is in year eight, has undiagnosed autism and ADHD, adding that the school is "absolutely" aware. The academy said it cannot discuss the circumstances of individuals but said it set "high expectations" for pupils, which its uniform policy supports.
Ms Birtley, who has four other children at the school, said she was "disgusted" with what had happened. "He's not the easiest child to look after but he's always gone in full school uniform," she said.
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"The sole was coming off on one of his school shoes so he had to come in trainers. I said he would be back in appropriate footwear the next school day."
She recalled receiving a phone call where staff said Matteo was refusing to try on a spare pair and had been isolated as a result, so she went to pick him up. "He said they were proper pressuring him to try them on," added Ms Birtley, who said her son's suspected autism meant he was not comfortable with putting on shoes provided by the school.
"His anxiety is already through the roof. It's totally unfair, he has always gone in full school uniform. I feel let down, it's absolutely disgusting the way they have treated him. The trainers are black with a bit of white on them.
"I don't get it. I think it's wrong. To me it should be absolutely fine for one day."
A spokesperson for Nottingham Academy, said: “We set high expectations for all pupils for what they can achieve, and ensure our behaviour, uniform and wider policies support this. Whilst we cannot discuss the circumstances of individual pupils, we do have a range of measures in place to assist with any uniform needs families may have, including providing uniform items on site.
"As a fully inclusive school, we also ensure reasonable adjustments are made to any policies and procedures so that we can provide the necessary support to children who have special educational needs when appropriate to do so.”
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