School uniform creates an even playing field and show who’s boss in a world that needs discipline
Footage of irate dad Dave Hopper laying into daughter's headteacher for his stance on uniform proves he is a bully-boy
DID anyone else catch the footage of irate school dad Dave Hopper laying into his daughter’s new headteacher outside Hartsdown Academy in Margate this week?
Hopper accused Matthew Tate of being “disgusting” and “abhorrent”.
He also used the word “Gestapo” to describe the headteacher’s approach to running the school.
Tate’s crime? Turning away students who weren’t wearing the correct uniform.
This was after a letter was sent out in July warning this was on the cards and explaining uniform expectations.
On day three, Hopper took the step of bringing someone with a camera with him to record his, no doubt premeditated, verbal attack on the headteacher.
After being told his daughter needed leather shoes instead of suede before she’d be allowed into school, Hopper informed the head that his daughter would not be returning as a pupil at all.
At which point, you can only imagine, the head probably breathed a huge sigh of relief.
My concern is, what kind of message is Dave Hopper sending to his daughter?
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I can only imagine he is one of those people who think rules are made to be broken. Some may say he wants his children to think for themselves, to stand out, to stand up to and question authority rather than just fit in — and that this is the way to go about it.
I agree, by the way, that it’s great to be able to think for yourself. Indeed, it’s the mark of any entrepreneur. But before most entrepreneurs work for themselves, they have to work for someone else.
And when you consider that school is the first step in learning discipline and preparing to join the world of work, it’s pretty simple: Every schoolchild needs to learn how to fit in with the rules, no matter how petty, pointless or pesky they might seem.
Being part of any team means being able to toe the line. Which, by the way, does not in any way stop you from thinking outside the box.
Making progress is about getting on with your peers, being enthusiastic, turning up on time and not giving your employees or boss a hard time.
And it’s about following the rules, whether you agree with them or not.
I guess Mr Militant Dad thinks he is taking a hero’s stance.
But I’m sorry to say that all the world sees is an angry little man trying to use bully-boy tactics to overpower the headteacher, who stood his ground impressively.
It’s the same mentality shown by people who pick on traffic wardens to vent their anger when everyone knows that if you park on a yellow line, you get a ticket.
I call it “lack of authority syndrome”.
The thing about school uniform is that it creates an even playing field.
No one knows whether you shop at Primark or Harrods, which is a liberation to most children.
Also, it’s the start of getting into a routine — you get up, put your uniform on and get ready to learn, without wasting hours worrying about your appearance.
He's laid down the boundaries
The same thing continues when you put on a suit or uniform to start work.
On which note, even now I’m the boss, I don’t wear what I want to wear to work — leggings and a T-shirt. I wear my own version of a uniform.
It’s all part of getting your attitude right.
So you can see what Matthew Tate is trying to do — and good on him.
But of course, this isn’t just about uniform. It’s about getting students to understand that there is someone in charge . . . and it’s not them.
And having watched Tate’s impressively calm face-off with Hopper, I reckon that, although he may have had the first week of term from hell, from here on it will be plain sailing.
Now that he’s drawn this zero-tolerance line in the sand, his students know the deal so he won’t have to be so heavy-handed.
He’s laid down the boundaries. And the difference between him and a parent is that he’s not clouded by worrying that the poor little darlings can’t wear the shoes they like.
Instead, and far more importantly, he is saying: “We are a serious institution. Turn up ready to learn and get on with it — or don’t turn up at all.”
Bravo to that!
Rob's found his angel
I REALLY like the sound of Robbie Williams’s wife, Ayda Field, who clearly spends much of the time mercilessly taking the mickey out of her husband.
She mentioned in an interview recently, no doubt with a bit of an eye-roll, that Robbie tells her several times a day that he is a national treasure.
She is the perfect antidote to the demons that led to Williams being so messed up that he once said: “I ran out of cocaine so I tried heroin.”
She’s funny, irreverent, a lovely mother, not to mention gorgeous and a great actress.
He’s happy and sorted and she is living testament to the power of having a good woman by your side.
Good for them. But I hope he knows he’s a lucky sod.
Double trouble
TWO bits of bad news for Tom Hiddleston in one week.
First it looks like there is no chance of him landing the James Bond part, after all.
The film’s producers are so keen for Daniel Craig to reprise the role, they’re offering him silly money to do so.
And then it turns out that his high-profile romance with Taylor Swift has come to an end as well.
I suppose it’s hardly surprising, given that someone pressed fast-forward and they lived five years’ worth of romance in five months.
Only a cynic would suggest it’s just that Taylor has served her purpose.
- APPARENTLY, sick patients will soon be encouraged to enter their symptoms into an NHS website to get an online diagnosis free of human contact as part of an expansion of the 111 hotline.
I’m all for efficiency but what’s next – a DIY surgery kit?
CROTCH-BARING
THERE’S another new trend in town: The crotch-baring dress, as seen here on model Giulia Salemi.
The question people are asking is whether you are brave enough to wear it.
To which the obvious answer is: “Of course not.”
But then again, I guess they are not meant to be worn by 47-year-old women.
Or for that matter, by anyone aged 20 years old.
With long brown hair. Called Sophia. Who happens to be my daughter.
Sophia, I hope you are reading this: You have been warned.
Rise to it girls, it'll pay off
IT is a truth universally acknowledged that the reason women get paid less than men is at least partly because they’re afraid to ask for a pay rise. Right?
Wrong! Well, it is according to new research, which shows that women ask for pay rises just as often as men. It’s just that men are 25 per cent more likely to get them.
“Having seen these findings, I think we have to accept that there is some element of pure discrimination against women,” said study co-author Andrew Oswald, Professor of Economics and Behavioural Science at the University of Warwick.
While It might be true that there is discrimination against women, I take issue with anyone who says we have to accept it.
There is some good news, namely that young women are more successful at negotiating pay and conditions than older women.
So things are changing and hopefully will continue to do so. Although the key factor, of course, is having kids. That is when the wheels come off and the gender pay gap starts to really emerge.
If you do want to ask for a pay rise here’s my advice: Be succinct about why you should get one, focusing on what you’ve done to deserve it. If the answer is no, ask for targets to ensure next time you ask, it’s a yes.
The other option of course is to go and see how easy it is to get paid what you think you’re worth somewhere else . . .
- READING Victoria Beckham’s letter to her 18-year-old self, where she suggests she has acne, is fat and loves a footballer, got me thinking what her parents would have written to her at that age. “It’s just a spot, you are not fat and footballers are only interested in girls, cars and the size of their willies” would sum it up nicely.