A mum has said she will send her child to a different school after her daughter was sent home on the first day for wearing designer shoes.
Picking your shoes to go back to school with as a kid was arguably one of the only things that contributed to making the return a somewhat pleasant experience.
Students who attend Grace College in Gateshead went back to school this week, as did millions of other children around the UK.
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But parents were astonished when their children were sent home for wearing, what teachers had branded, ‘incorrect footwear’.
Among those who were sent home was Melissa Pope’s 11-year-old daughter Layla, who was wearing Vivienne Westwood slip-on shoes.
Melissa said that her daughter was sent to isolation during her first day of being at high school, before her grandma could pick her up, and she’s claiming it has put her child off wanting to go back.
The 37-year-old said: “My daughter has had her first day at secondary school.
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“She's been sitting in a room not learning anything at all and not wanting to go back.
"They've said she can't wear them for health and safety because the shoe doesn't cover the top of the foot.
“I asked if I could get her a loafer and they said that still wasn't acceptable, it had to be a brogue type of shoe.
"I just don't see why, I don't understand it.
“She was wearing them for the last two years of primary school and she didn't have any problems.
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“I think it's just a power thing.
“There were so many girls sent home today.
"It's a school, it's not a camp.
“They're getting treated like they're in the Army and they have got to do this and that and wear this and that.”
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The mum has said she would rather find a different school for her child to go to than buy a new pair of shoes.
The father of a year nine student who was also sent home said a lot of pupils were pulled up for wearing Vivienne Westwood shoes.
He said: “The North East has the lowest GCSE results in the country and we've got a secondary school sending students home for a pair of shoes.
"Surely their education and their GCSEs are more important than a pair of shoes?
“We're in the middle of a cost of living crisis.
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“Parents have probably scrimped and saved up for these shoes that were £100 because their kids harped on for them because all their friends are wearing them."
A spokesperson from the College has said: “Grace College is proud of its uniform for the professional image it portrays, and we expect students to wear it with pride.
“Our uniform policy is designed to be fair, equal and affordable to all students, which is especially important during a cost of living crisis.”
Mia Williams