English School Bans Expensive Coats To Prevent “Poverty Shaming”

We previously discussed whether England was becoming a “Nanny State,” including the effective banning of nannies.  The concern is that well-intentioned measures are creating climate of governmental control and the gradual reduction of rights in England, here, here, here, here, here, and here.  Now a school in England has been students from wearing “expensive” jackets because it may  “poverty shame” other students.  It is not clear who will make the judgment of a jacket that is too expensive to wear or wear parents are to shop to guarantee that they are not dressing their kids too well.

The concern over the feeling of other kids about clothes is not unfounded.  Indeed, one of the reasons for school uniforms is that it removes the whole array of issues surrounding clothing.  However, outer coats are generally not regulated.  What is interesting is that the school appears to have school uniforms.

The letter sent to parents of kids at Woodchurch High School in Merseyside informed parents that “pupils will not be permitted to bring in Canadian [sic] Goose and Monclair [sic] coats after the Christmas break.” Those items can apparently go as high as $900 (at the rate my kids lose their jackets, there is no chance they will be seeing their items in their closets).

Parents reportedly asked for the prohibition on other parents with one saying “They feel stigmatised, they feel left out, they feel inadequate.”  So the solution is not to simply speak to your kids but seek to bar other parents in choosing coats?