My Family

I grew up in Sheffield and had working class origins. There was no pushing from my parents, nor, I think, from myself--to go to the grammar school. I had a certain amount of natural ability but wasn't conscious of any particular ambition or pressure. Encouragement, but not pressure.

I had one sister, 2 years older than me. I don't think we talked about clothes, except perhaps in the PT sense mentioned below. She went to the SM and occasionally had cutting remarks to make about certain boys who were fat and whose tummies hung over their shorts in PT, or others that were stick thin and had prominent ribs. These comments reinforced my relief that I wasn't at that school. I also remember her commenting disdainfully once when we passed a scout troop and one of the scouts was wearing khaki shorts which were so short they had virtually no inside leg - she wasn't impressed, but I argued the opposite case, possibly just to be different.

Home Wear

For dress up it I wore either the school uniform or a short trouser suit with white shirt and a non-school tie. For play it was also a white shirt, sometimes short sleeved, without tie, a pullover if necessary, and school shorts. In summer I occasionally had lightweight khaki shorts.

I had a short pants suit. This was the standard outfit (usually renewed at Whitsuntide). The material was not the same grey fannel as the school shorts, but usually a smoother material in lighter grey or pale grey-blue. My last short pants suit was bought when I was 11 years old. I last wore it at the Whitsuntide parade the following year, but I remember the shorts lasting as play shorts for another year before I went into longs. I don't remember going to the store, and I wouldn't have asked for longs. My mother made those decisions, and she bought my first longs when I was 13. [HBC note: Compare this with modern boys who are likely to be asking for certain styles and garments at 4 or 5 years of age.

I often wore sandals. Again, fairly standard in summer. Tan or brown, but only for home use. Yes, I liked them and still do. I always wore knee socks with shorts, whatever the footwear, and I never had them round my ankles. I always held in place with elastic garters.

Primary School

My primary school clothes were sdmilar to what I wore at grammar school, but I can't remember any regulation about shirts, and there were certainly no special ties. Caps were optional. I never wore one at primary school. The only regulated part of the uniform was the blazer, which was green (quite bright). I still have the school badge I had on one of my blazers. I wore shorts throughout, but all I remember is that they were grey, longish and baggy-ish. Also knee socks, grey, but again, not regulated.

Grammar School

I attended grammar school from 1956-63 and the uniform changed little during those years. We wore a cap, navy blazer with school badge, white or grey long sleeved shirt, school tie, grey trousers, black shoes.

School cap

Caps were always worn during the first 3 years. We weren't allowed out of the school gates without a cap - e.g. I was once denied a games afternoon because I'd forgotten my cap and couldn't be allowed on the bus which took us to the playing field without it.

Tie

The tie in the first two years was navy, nylon, and with a flat (rather than V-shaped) end. It was quite short and had horizontal white bands. The senior ties were cotton, of traditional cut and had diagonal white stripes. I still have one of each.

Shirt

The shirts were very roomy, with long sleeves, even in summer. Large flaps (large enough to meet under the crotch). No pockets. Integral collar and cuffs. Most boys conformed to the regulation grey, but white became commoner amongst the older boys.

Trousers

The trousers could be short or long, but the almost universal practice was to wear shorts to the end of the second year, age 13-14. The shorts had belt loops, yes, although I sometimes wore them with braces. They had two pockets, in line with the side seams, very deep. No rear pockets as far as I recall. Fully lined to the short inside hem, always button fly. A bit baggy, and usually reaching to just to the top of the knee cap.

The shorts were coupled with grey knee socks with navy bands. Also, the tie became less juvenile at the beginning of the third year. Underwear seemed to be almost as universally uniform, consisting of white vest and white pants of the boxer short style, but made of flannelette. These were also quite long - about mid thigh.

Kneesocks

Kneesocks were required at grammar school, and I think it was just assumed as the appropriate mode of dress at home. I had a few old pictures when I was 8 or 9 and these showed me in ankle socks, although I have no recollection of them. All I remember is my mother putting out the clothes for the day, and these normally included knee socks. There wasn't a choice, or maybe I just never asked for one. If I had, I think I would have opted for knee socks anyway, if only because I was so used to wearing them all day at school. Also, I think I felt some vulnerability at having to have bare knees, and probably wouldn't have opted to show any more than I had to.

My Opinion

There were two things I never much liked about the uniform. The first was a general problem. At that time it was usual for mothers to starch the collars, and this caused some irritation. The second dislike was the short trousers. They were invariably long and baggy, and made of heavy, lined flannel. I suppose shorts must have been cold during the winter, but I don't recall any problem in that respect. We just accepted it. The real problem was that at 11 or 12 we were beginning to be more conscious of our appearance. It always seemed to me that boys' knees were not particularly attractive and were not much flattered by long shorts. I was pleased to get into long trousers and at the same time was sufficiently confident to tell my mother to stop using starch on the collars.

My School Mate's Opinions

The only comments I remember related to shorts which were either longer or shorter than the standard "just-on-the-knee" style. There were some jibes about those who wore shorts which drooped over their knees. I also remember a discussion on a German boy who spent a term in the school and wore much shorter shorts. The comments were on the lines of "we wouldn't dare wear anything like that here". This seemed curious, because the school scouts were beginning to do just that! I can only think we regarded scouting as a sort of "sport" which required separate dress codes. The only parental comments were on similar lines when there was a documentary featuring a French youth in shorts whose shorts were three or four inches above the knee. My mother thought they looked smart but said "Vincent would never accept anything like that".

Other Boys

There were several boys that did wear long trousers while the rest of us were still in shorts. They didn't gain any advantage from wearing longs. I don't recall any comment at all.

There were a very small number of boys in the 3rd year that still wore shorts, none in the 4th. I remember one by name who continued in shorts to the end of the 3rd year. There were a few comments, but no serious ribbing. It was accepted. I don't precisely recall what was said to them. but it was only gentle ribbing about him being the last boy to go into longs. I don't think we saw it as any big deal.

The Secondary Modern

Most of my mates at the primary school attended the secondary modern. It was attached to the primary school and had the same uniform - green blazer but a lot of freedom in all other respects. Most boys as far as I remember wore white shirts and grey trousers - usually short in the first two years. My grammar school was on the oppposite side of town, and with the travelling and the homework, I lost touch with most of my old friends at the SM.

I didn't mention sports & PT kit in my previous notes, but in those days it was the universal practice for boys to do PT in shorts and plimsols, with no shirt or vest. The shorts were black cotton at my grammar school, white at the SM, and in both cases were long and baggy. One of my most vivid recollections was relief that I wasn't at the SM - (a) they had to do their PT stripped to the waist in the presence of girls & (b) they had to go on cross country runs through the streets, which in many cases meant running past their own houses. I would have been highly embarrassed to do either.

Scouts

I was not a Cub. I don't know whu. It just never seemed to occur to me, and my parents never suggested it. So I can't comment on cub uniforms.

I did join the Scout troop at school. The Scouts at school had an altogether more interesting uniform whose military look appealed to me. The shirt was navy and short sleeved, with epaulettes, the shorts navy corduroy, the socks navy with green bands, and of course, the broad leather belt and neckerchief added to the attractive appearance. The scouts also began to adopt shorts of a much briefer cut, which were much more flattering. Some of the older scouts were wearing shorts in an extremly brief style--9 or 10 inches above the knees, and this seemed remarkable in the late 50's when even football and PE shorts were long and baggy. Of course, this shorter style gradually filtered through into the school uniform, but never to the same extent as in the scouts. I can remember wondering what the scouts wore underneath, as the boxer shorts I and my friends were wearing were often longer than their scout shorts. They had presumably found it necessary to adopt briefs, and perhaps this was one of the thrusts tending towards the widespread appearance of the y-front brief by the end of the 50's.

I think the scout uniform of the late 50's and 60's was one of the smartest and most appealing of boys' uniforms, and it was a source of great regret that the shorts were replaced with longs in the late 60's, except of course for BP scouts. It is also interesting that the shorts which my generation shunned and now much more macho and are more frequently adopted by choice, at least outside school time, and in decent weather.