Durban - The Department of Education in KwaZulu-Natal has said pupils' hairstyles should be in accordance with the school code of conduct.
This after the Durban High School sent home a group of matric boys this week for allegedly having 'designer hairstyles'.
Education spokesperson Muzi Mahlambi said the pupils hair must be in accordance with school policy.
This came after a woman, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Daily News she had seen pupils from the school leaving early. When she questioned them, the boys told her they had been sent home because of their inappropriate hairstyles.
“I found that to be ridiculous. The pupils were sent home because of their hair,” the woman said.
“The boys had their matric dance last week and still had their hairstyles from then,” she said.
According to the woman, the hairstyles were “fade cuts”, where the hair on the side of the head was cut short and the hair on the top left longer.
“I don’t feel that those hairstyles were so bad that the boys needed to be sent away. Also, it did not seem like their parents had been called to the school either because they (the pupils) were just roaming about,” she said.
The woman complained that a hairstyle was not a good enough reason to send pupils home.
Mahlambi said pupils had to adhere to the code of conduct of their schools.
“If the rule is that boys must have a brush cut where the hair is even on all sides, then that is what they must do,” he said.
Vee Gani, the chairperson of the South Durban branch of the KZN Parents’ Association, agreed with Mahlambi.
“Each school has its own rules when it comes to hair, but the hair needs to be neat and tidy,” he said.
Steve la Marque, director of marketing at DHS, confirmed that a group of Grade 12 pupils had been sent home because of “designer hairstyles that attracted unnecessary attention”.
He said DHS had a code of conduct that was established in accordance with the South African Schools Act which all pupils were expected to abide by.
La Marque acknowledged that the pupils had styled their hair for the weekend’s matric dance, but said the pupils were told to return to school on Monday with the correct hairstyle.
“Boys and parents were reminded in the form of a letter, that boys would be required to return to school on Monday with the correct hair.
“At the dance, the boys were again reminded of this by the headmaster,” said La Marque.
The pupils were sent home on Monday because they did not comply.