Mum shares anger after school suspends girls over welly protest in north Cornwall
Her daughters wanted to protest in their own way by wearing wellies to their school in Camelford for the day
A farmer has said she will take further action after a school suspended her two daughters for taking part in a welly boot protest.
Alice Hatt and her partner are “fuming” and dismayed after claiming a teacher took the girls “home” to a farm that wasn’t theirs and left them there unsupervised for two hours.
Alice’s family farm beef and sheep on 800 acres at Tregrylls Farm, Lesnewth, between Boscastle and Davidstow. Her children are set to inherit the farm but because of the government’s changes to inheritance tax, the family wanted to take part in Tuesday’s protest in London but were too busy.
However, her daughters Kimberly, 12, and Pippa, 13, wanted to protest in their own way by wearing wellies to Sir James Smith’s School, Camelford, for the day, as many farming children did across the country on Tuesday.
Alice takes up the story: “The girls wanted to do it and I was very proud of them that they stood up for what they believe in and they didn’t back down. However, after about an hour and a half I got a phone call from the school saying I needed to bring shoes in for the girls. I told them we were out TB testing so couldn’t get there until the end of the day.
“I asked if they could just wear wellies for one day to support farmers, but they said ‘no, if they’re not going to change their shoes, they’re suspended’. So they put my two girls in a car with a teacher who drove them to a farm we farm but don’t live at.
“They didn’t even take them to the farmyard, they drove them halfway down the lane and left them there for two hours unsupervised. It’s literally just a farm with animals and slurry pits – all the dangers that a farm has.”
She claims that after two hours a member of staff from the school picked up the girls from the deserted farm and took them back to Sir James Smith’s. “They missed lunch and had to wait until 3pm when I could pick them up,” added their mum.
Alice says she is taking it further: “Surely you have no right to be driving my children anywhere and leaving them unsupervised?”
The family are just one of many in the area who have allowed their children to take part in the welly protest. “The school didn’t like it, even though we had to support them when the teachers were protesting. My kids had five days off school last year because they were all up London protesting their pay. I find it very hypocritical to be honest with you.
“They were in full school uniform, they had their wellies on as well, which were clean. They didn’t go to school covered in dirt or anything. It was one day to make a stand when they teachers had five days last year to make a stand for their cause.
“The girls weren’t doing it to follow a crowd, they were doing it because it’s their life and future.” The family own their farm so hoped their children will inherit it. “That was the plan but obviously nothing’s going smoothly with that anymore. I think the inheritance tax is an absolute disgrace. It’s a kick in the teeth to farmers everywhere.”
Another mum in the area, who is friends with Alice, took to Facebook to say her children would also be taking part in the welly protest. Posting the day before the protest, she said: “Let’s make this very clear my children will be wearing wellies tomorrow at school. I think it’s disgusting that the schools have not made more of a statement supporting our farmers, especially as we are a country community and a large amount of our families in school are farmers.
“Don’t use the excuse of school policy as they can dress up for Children in Need, Halloween and any other charity or time that suits. I’m pretty sure that this is one of the biggest things in the country that needs to be supported now and for the future, and people need to be educated about the effects of farming and, God forbid, not having farmers.”
She added: “The schools are so worried about A* student grades and how it makes them look on paper, but none of this teaches them how to live, to feed themselves and how to look after the countryside we live in. So YES my children will be wearing wellies to support our lifestyles, our livelihood and our country.”
We have contacted Sir James Smith’s School and the Westcountry Schools Trust, a multi academy trust which manages the school, on a number of occasions this week asking for a response to Alice’s concerns but have yet to receive a response.