A mum has hit out at her daughter's school after she was ordered to stop wearing her own jumper in class.
She claims children are left 'absolutely freezing' due to windows and doors being kept open to help air circulate, and in turn help minimise the spread of coronavirus.
Mia, a Year 11 student at Stoke Damerel Community College in Plymouth, was given a plain, long-sleeved black jumper to wear at school by her mum.
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However, the garment doesn't comply with the school's uniform policy, which states students must wear sleeveless jumpers if they want something to go over their shirt. They are also permitted to wear a blazer.
Anita Frier, Stoke Damerel Community College's executive principal, has addressed the situation and maintained that Mia has been treated fairly.
But Mia's mum is now saying the short-sleeved jumpers permitted aren't suitable, and fears the stress of the situation could affect her studies - with GCSE exams coming up in December.
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The concerned parent said: "As you can imagine, it's quite icy cold most days and the children are being left absolutely freezing. They're allowed to keep their blazers on.
"The schools do offer black jumpers, but they're sleeveless.
"So we provided my daughter with a long-sleeved, plain black, knitted v-neck school jumper which the school have banned her from wearing, as it's not one of their own.
"She's been told if she doesn't remove the jumper and comply, she'll have to be put into isolation which could then lead to her being excluded."
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Mia's mum said the jumper she gave her daughter has no logos, sequins or other embellishments, arguing it's a 'proper school jumper'.
She added: "I understand the Covid-19 measures have to be in place for everyone's safety, but really they should be more concerned with the welfare of the children over their policies."
Executive Principal Anita Frier said that Mia had been given a sleeveless jumper that was free of charge, and that 'she is also wearing her college blazer'.
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Frier said: "Our college has a school uniform policy, which includes a short sleeved shirt or long sleeved shirt, sleeveless jumper and a blazer. The student has chosen to wear a short-sleeved shirt.
"She chooses not to wear her blazer on some days. When she attended school wearing a jumper which was not part of the school uniform, she was asked not to wear it. We suggested she could wear a garment beneath her shirt and advised her to wear her blazer if she felt cold.
"On [11 November] the student asked our Head of Year 11 what would happen if she refused to remove the jumper, and was advised that ignoring instruction is against the school's behaviour policies."
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However, Mia's mum refutes this, telling LADbible that her daughter only removes the blazer after partaking in physical activity such as dance or sport.
Frier added: "The college's priority throughout this continuing pandemic is to ensure the health and safety of all students and staff.
"We have 1,700 people on site and are proud that we have successfully and fully returned to on-site learning since schools re-opened. We are following the Government's guidelines on Covid-safe polices, including ventilation. We monitor the temperature of our classes to ensure that our rooms are not cold."
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