Outraged parents at a school where a pupil was sent home from a culture day celebration for wearing a union flag dress have called on the mistress to publicly apologise
Courtney Wright, 12, was forced to spend a morning in isolation at Bilton School in Rugby, after staff told her she couldn’t wear her Spice Girls-style dress or make a speech like other pupils.
The straight-A student, who had planned to talk about history and traditions in a talk she had prepared, was told the dress was unacceptable, removed from her lesson and left to wait into the school reception until her dad arrived from work to collect her.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Keir Starmer appeared to support Courtney’s choice of dress after his spokesperson said he had always been ‘clear that being British is something to be celebrated’.
Outside the Warwickshire school on Tuesday, parents said they were ‘disgusted and surprised’ by the event that had prompted an apology by the school’s Stowe Valley Trust.
‘I couldn’t believe it when I saw it on social media,’ said one 44-year-old dad, whose 12-year-old daughter is in the same year as Courtney.
‘It’s disgusting if you think this was supposed to be about celebrating diversity. My daughter wore a tie made of the family tartan because we are Scottish and nothing was said about that.
‘It’s a medium multi-ethnic school and there were other pupils who wore traditional Asian dress and headwear which was acceptable, so why not allow a union flag dress?’
Courtney Wright poses for a photo showing her costume after being made to leave school on culture day
She was hauled out of lessons and made to sit in reception until her father Stuart Field (pictured) collected her
A poster advertising the school’s Culture Day wants students ‘recognising and celebrating the rich cultural diversity within our school community’
Another parent with a daughter in the same year, said: ‘I was really surprised by this because it was supposed to be all about inclusivity and cultural tradition. She should have been allowed to wear the dress and make her speech.’
Another dad said an email to parents before last Friday’s event had only referred to children not being allowed to wear football team strips.
‘What kind of message does this send out to the local community?’ he asked.
‘Cancelling a child because she’s proud of her British heritage is outrageous. It’s the head mistress who needs cancelling and who needs to stop hiding behind the school trust and make a public apology.’
Another father said: ‘The school needs calling out for this. My son really enjoys going here and is doing well academically but this kind of publicity is really damaging for everyone, especially the girl it happened to.’
Despite other children being allowed to wear traditional international dress, parents said an apology from the school’s Trust apology was ‘too little too late’ and the decision to remove Courtney ‘ill-judged’.
‘Most parents are behind the girl’s dad from speaking out about this,’ another mum added.
‘My daughter said she’d heard that she had been told she couldn’t wear the dress because the school celebrates British culture every day and this was a chance to be more diverse.’
Courtney’s dad Stuart Field, 47, said: ‘Courtney was so embarrassed and couldn’t understand what she’d done wrong. It’s the school who have made it political and it went against everything the event was being held for. She chose the dress and wrote the piece off her own back.
‘She should not be made to feel embarrassed about being British. And she shouldn’t be punished for celebrating being British – nobody else I’ve spoken to can quite get their heads around it.’
‘Straight A’ student Courtney wore a Spice Girls-esque dress as part of her school’s culture day on Friday
Mr Field said Courtney wanted to wear the dress to celebrate being British and the Spice Girls, taking inspiration from Geri Halliwell (pictured) in her iconic dress
The school contacted Mr Field over the weekend and have since apologised for the move
Headteacher Jayne Delves. The school contacted Courtney’s father over the weekend to apologise for the move
Mr Field said the school’s actions went against the message of inclusion and other pupils with St George’s flags and Welsh flags were turned away from the school gates.
The school contacted Stuart over the weekend and have since apologised for the move.
A spokesman for Stowe Valley Trust said: ‘At Bilton School, we are proud of the diversity of our students and the rich heritage they bring to our community. We are committed to fostering an environment where every pupil feels respected, valued, and included.
‘On Friday 11th July, an incident occurred during our Culture Celebration Day that caused considerable upset to one of our pupils, her family, and members of the wider community. We deeply regret the distress this has caused and offer our sincere and unreserved apologies.
‘We have since spoken directly with the pupil and her family to listen to their concerns and reflect on how this could have been handled better. We are committed to learning from this experience and ensuring that every student feels recognised and supported when expressing pride in their heritage.
‘As a school, we are reviewing our policies and strengthening staff training to ensure our practices reflect our values of inclusion, respect, and understanding for all.’
When Mail Online called at the school gates today and asked to speak to head teacher Miss Jayne Delves about the decision and parents comments, a member of staff said: ‘We can’t talk about this. She won’t be speaking to you.’
Following outrage at Courtney’s exile from class, the government stated the child was right to celebrate being British.
Stuart Field with his daughter Courtney during happier times, before she was pulled out of school
Her father Mr Field said: ‘Courtney was so embarrassed and couldn’t understand what she’d done wrong’
Ranjit Samra, the chief executive of the Stowe Valley Trust, who apologised after the ordeal
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: ‘The PM has always been clear that being British is something to be celebrated.
‘You can see that from everything this government has done. We are a tolerant, diverse, open country, proud of being British.’
Mr Field said Courtney wanted to wear the dress to celebrate being British, the Spice Girls and the freedom of being able to wear a dress.
‘This was her interpretation of British culture and what it means to her,’ he said.
The child’s father added: ‘She also wrote this speech to go with it and was very proud of what she’d done.’
Courtney said after the ordeal: ‘I felt really embarrassed. I wad made to sit in reception all day. All my friends were getting angry at why the teachers were doing that because my dress was wonderful.’
Mr Field, who works in marine restoration, said: ‘Courtney was so embarrassed and couldn’t understand what she’d done wrong.
‘The next thing I get a call at work at around 9am to say she’s not allowed in school dressed like that and that it was unacceptable.’
‘I wasn’t able to get away from work until about midday. They made her sit in reception all morning in front of the receptionists and kept her in isolation.
‘She’s a straight A student, one of the brightest in her year and she’s never been in trouble before so she was really upset.
‘She wasn’t the only kid picked out either – one child from a farming background was turned away at the gates for wearing traditional flat-cap and checked shirt.
‘The school now want her to come back and read the speech, but she doesn’t feel comfortable about it or wearing the dress anymore.’
