Parents have slammed a high school for excluding some pupils from their leavers' prom. Golborne High School, in Wigan, is organsing a traditional 'graduation ball' for their Year 11 students.
However, not all of their pupils have been invited to the event - and it hasn't gone down well with some of the families, reports Manchester Evening News. It has been claimed that it is only the school's high achievers that are being allowed to attend.
It is claimed that any pupils who have had time off, even for a genuine reason, have been stopped from going to the party. One mum says that her daughter's attendance is just below 90 per cent and therefore has not been invited to attend.
"I have spoken to several parents who have explained their child couldn't go because they've had time off due to injury or mental health issues and my daughter is one of them," she said. "We seem to have found the common problem in the children who aren't invited is lower grades that don't meet their standards, which in itself is completely unfair."
The mum continued that she has struggled to get an answer from school when she contacted them looking for an explanation. She shared a copy of a message she received from the school, which said: "Thank you for your query about the prom but all decisions are final and the staff will not communicate with you any further on this issue."
The mum said: "No reason was given and I did ask and they refused under any circumstances to give reasons. She has never been suspended or sent home for bad behaviour. Her mental health took a huge hit and she was off for around a week, but that's it.
"Over the course of mocks she kept getting told how well she's doing and she's definitely going to get an invite until she didn't. Now they won't give any reason."
Another mum said: "I'm disappointed that all the children have worked hard and only a handful of people are going to the prom. The children that are going to the prom are the ones that are doing well at school and don't need extra support."
Some of them are now trying to get a private prom organised to make sure everyone has a chance to celebrate, but claim the school is trying to block this event form happening too. Headteacher Alison Gormally said "the school has no comment to make" on the issue.
An Ofsted report commented on how pupils at the school "aspire to achieve highly because leaders and staff expect the very best of them". It also stressed that lots of support is given to youngsters at the school.
"Pupils benefit from highly supportive relationships with teachers," it said. "This helps pupils to feel happy and safe in school. For example, pupils in Year 11 spoke highly about the help that they had received from staff about looking after their mental health during recent examinations. Leaders deal swiftly and appropriately with any incidents of bullying or hurtful language."
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