A Gateshead school is facing accusations it has ‘lost all touch with reality’ after a 15-year-old girl was left with blisters when she was told to wear shoes which were too small, as students were sent home for breaching its strict uniform policy.

The teenager returned to Grace College in Gateshead for her first day of Year 11 on Tuesday, only to be told by staff that her plain black ballet-style shoes, which covered her toes but not the top of her feet, were unsuitable.

The school has an extremely strict dress code for all its students, which includes bans on wearing dental retainers, hair bobbles on wrists and placing items in blazer pockets. Inspections of all children’s uniform takes place every morning, with the threat of being sent home until any issue is remedied.

A string of angry parents were shocked to find their children sent home on Tuesday, many for wearing black shoes that did not comply with the school’s restrictive rules. 

It comes as a psychologist told MailOnline such strict measures will cause students extra stress and anxiety, impacting on their wellbeing.

Have you been caught out by very strict uniform policies for your child? Email elizabeth.haigh@mailonline.co.uk 

The teenager returned to Grace College in Gateshead for her first day of Year 11 on Tuesday, only to be told by staff that her plain black ballet-style shoes, which covered her toes but not the top of her feet, were unsuitable

Grace College in Gateshead has a hefty list of uniform rules and will send students home for breaching them

Melissa Pope said her 11-year-old daughter Layla Thomson was sent home during her first day of secondary school for her shoes (pictured) and will not be going back

The year 11’s father claims the school told her to wear a spare pair of size seven brogue-style shoes or be sent home – despite the 15-year-old explaining she was a size eight. 

The 43-year-old, who lives in the Bensham area of Gateshead, said his daughter wore the smaller shoes, as she did didn’t want to be sent home, and was left with blisters on both feet.

On Wednesday, she attended school in Low Fell, Gateshead, in the same ballet-style shoes, having ordered some new shoes which had not yet arrived, and was sent home.

Her father said: ‘We have ordered her some shoes but they haven’t come. She wore a pair of shoes that she already had. They were an open shoe and [staff] were saying they had to be closed.

‘The teacher asked what size she was and gave her a size seven. They must have found some in the lost property. They said: “If you don’t wear them you will be sent home.” Both her little toes are now blistered up.’

He has sent a complaint via email and is waiting for a response and has told his daughter to only wear what is comfortable.

He continued: ‘[The school] don’t seem to be supportive whatsoever. It’s like they’re looking for reasons to send them home.’ 

He said: ‘They’ve had enough time off and the teachers have been on strike. They should be educating them, not trying their best to send them home. They think more about what they’re wearing than their education.

‘I just think it’s getting beyond a joke. I accept they have to have rules but they just seem to be coming out with more. It’s like being in the Army the way they go on, it’s unreal.

‘I think they have lost touch with reality completely. It just seems to be a very poorly managed school.’

Grace College’s uniform policy states students must wear ‘black, sensible shoes which can be polished’.

It explicitly bans patent leather, ‘distinctive fashion features’, buckles, coloured stitching, tags, logos, boots, training shoes and ballet-style shoes.

Shoes may also not have a heel higher than one inch, measured where the heel meets the instep. It adds that the top of the foot must be fully covered due to ‘safety reasons’.

According to its uniform policy, ‘inspections’ of students take place each morning and any uniform ‘breach’ that cannot be remedied immediately will result in a student being sent home.

‘[They] are not permitted to return until the matter is dealt with,’ the policy adds. 

Psychologist Bayu Prihandito told MailOnline the rules could cause students severe stress and anxiety. 

He said:  ‘The specificity of some rules, such as the type of leather for shoes, tights, and even the length of fringes, highlights the intense scrutiny students might feel on a daily basis and the potential stress or anxiety that might follow from trying to comply.

‘These aren’t just about maintaining a uniform appearance, but they go deep into one’s personal territories, like hair dyes and extensions, which are often ways teenagers choose to express their always-evolving self. 

‘Additionally, rules like not allowing dental retainers, which can be medically advised, seem to prioritise aesthetics over student wellbeing.’

Grace College has been contacted for a response to these claims. 

Also sent home on Tuesday were a year ten pupil, who was wearing a pair of Nike walking boots which were entirely black, a year nine student who was wearing ballet pumps and an 11-year-old on her first ever day at secondary school.

Melissa Pope said her 11-year-old daughter Layla Thomson was sent home during her first day of secondary school for wearing the popular Vivienne Westwood slip-on shoes.

The 37-year-old, from Car Hill, Gateshead, said her daughter spent the day in isolation before being picked up by her grandmother and now does not want to return to the school.

The mother-of-two said: ‘My daughter has had her first day at secondary school. 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. I think it’s just a power thing. There were so many girls sent home today.

A year 10 student was sent home for wearing Nike walking boots which were completely black

A year nine student was also sent home for wearing black ballet pumps

‘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.

‘The only thing it’s done today is disrupt a whole school. She hasn’t done anything or had any lessons. She doesn’t know what the school is like. She’s just been stuck in a room.

‘I’m not going to buy another pair of shoes, she will just not go back! I will try and get her into a different school.’

A spokesman for the school said: ‘Our students and staff are enjoying a productive first week back at college and integrating into school life as we would expect. However, at the beginning of the new term there may be a small number of issues to address in any school.

‘We reiterate the importance of applying our rules consistently on issues like uniform, not least for the vast majority of families who have sent children to school properly attired this week, and to ensure that all students feel welcome, safe and free from any pressures.

‘When students need to put a uniform issue right, they are given an opportunity to do so. We have a supply of high-quality new and nearly new uniform in college that we can share with students to support them to put this right.

‘When it is not possible to put things right, we always contact parents to seek their support in doing so.

‘The college does not comment on individual cases publicly. We deal with these in line with our complaints policy where issues can be dealt with fairly and with appropriate privacy.’