A furious mum has blasted her son's school after he was 'excluded' for wearing an anxiety ring.
Abby Wiseman says her son, Ethan, suffers from anxiety and wears a 'fidget ring' to help with his condition.
But the mum says the 16-year-old was told by teaching staff at Scott Medical and Healthcare College to remove the band - despite them being aware of his mental health.
However Ethan refused to remove the ring, and Abby says staff excluded him from class and the mum was warned she would be hearing from the headteacher.
The school has not commented on the incident specifically, however it states that it expects "all students present themselves in-line with school policies".
The school says it offers support to parents and students to ensure the correct uniform is worn.
But Abby said since management changed at the school, Ethan's ring, which he son uses to calm him, has become an issue.
She told PlymouthLive : "He used to use a slap band on his wrist, but people would notice a bit more.
"So I did some research and one of my friends suggested a fidget ring, an anxiety band.
“It’s a plain band, like a wedding band and it spins. It doesn’t make any noise so when he is feeling anxious he spins it. It’s a distraction technique.
"When the previous headteacher was there, I went to him and spoke to him, gave him information on it and he was absolutely fine with it. He just wanted my son to be happy.
"He didn’t really care if that came from a ring or whatever, he was just all for his mental health and if that’s what he needed to keep him happy and in school."
Abby says Ethan had previously removed the ring when told to do so by teachers. However his anxiety was building so Abby went to the school to explain the situation.
The mum says the deputy headteacher told her he would inform the rest of the staff and that "everything would be okay".
However, the next day, she said: "I had a phone call again from another teacher saying Ethan had been put 'into red' for refusing to take off his ring.
"The following day I was told Ethan was being 'excluded' and the headteacher would be in contact. When I spoke to my son about it, he said it was because he refused to take his ring off."
Abby said Ethan "really wants to be in school" and after not hearing back from the college about why her son was "excluded", he went back into class on Friday (December 17) because he did not want to miss out on any more education.
Abby has described the school as treating lessons like a "boot camp" and says she is worried for her son's education.
She said: "Ethan is in his final year, with exams coming up. He just doesn’t need this.
"They are supposed to be teaching individuality, they are supposed to be allowing them to grow into the people they want to be and instead they have created a type of boot camp where children aren’t allowed to express their mental health.
"They have taken it too far, and it’s not really about looking after the children anymore, it’s about image. School is not about that.
"Excluding him for wearing a ring is a bit far-fetched.
"It doesn't seem to matter what I tell the school, they just don’t care because it’s about an image and he’s wearing a ring, yet staff can wear wedding bands, earrings and make-up."
When contacted for comment, Will Smith, CEO of the Greenshaw Learning Trust who run the college, said: "Our expectation is that all students present themselves in-line with school policies and Scott College offers support to parents and students to ensure the correct uniform is worn.
"We have proven experience in transforming schools and believe the key to success is to create a supportive and inclusive learning environment.
"If any students or parents have queries regarding our policies they should contact the school."
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