Uniform
St Mary’s Catholic College, Gateshead, focuses on the development of the whole person – the individual within, the individual as a member of the college community, and the individual who interacts in the wider community. The college believes the maintenance of high standards regarding the uniform is crucial to developing within each student a sense of belonging, and personal and collegial pride.
The college’s expectations
All students are to Be Safe. Be Respectful. Be a Learner.
They should:
- wear the full college uniform
- wear it correctly
- provide a note of explanation when the correct uniform is not being worn.
Students out of uniform will have a Uniform Infringement Notice recorded in Compass.
Rationale
A consistently enforced regulation uniform policy:
- assists in bringing students to the realisation that the sum total of a responsible life is to do what you ought, not what you want
- builds a school-wide sense of community, identity and responsibility to the community
- assists in preventing abusive behaviours, such as harassment and bullying, which breed when the bonds of community are weak and positive group norms are absent
- develops self-discipline and builds character
- sets clearly defined boundaries for adolescent behaviour, which are essential in developing a sense of right and wrong as well as balance and perspective in life
- develops a college-wide sense of belonging to the community and responsibility to the community
- ensures the individualistic ethic – concern for your own needs does not negate a loyal living out of commitment to the common good
- acts as a means of bringing students to the realisation that the “cult of experience” – the freedom to do what you want without reference to any standard distinct from your own feelings about yourself – cannot take over from the culture of obedience
- promotes a positive image of the college in the wider community.