Winnipeg nursery school to review dress code after girl, 3, told not to wear sundress
Little Years Nursery School says it's just enforcing the policy of the elementary school it operates in
A Winnipeg nursery school says it was following the rules when it told the family of a three-year-old girl she couldn't wear her favourite sundress to school, but it has added it will review its dress code.
Three-year-old Lola Stonehouse wore an ankle-length pink and orange dress to school on Wednesday, when the temperature reached 30 C in Winnipeg.
"It was just a straightforward simple sundress that had crisscrossed straps on her shoulders, and apparently they were too thin," Lola's father, Jamie Stonehouse, told As It Happens host Carol Off on Friday.
"At three years old, telling a little girl she can't wear something is absolutely ridiculous."
In an emailed statement, Little Years Nursery School said it uses the same dress code enforced by Ralph Maybank School, the elementary school it operates in.
The nursery school said the code forbids spaghetti straps and low-cut shirts on girls, and muscle shirts with low-hanging sleeves on boys.
"While The Little Years School is concerned that proper procedures were not followed by the parents with respect to their grievance, The Little Years Board of Directors is fully committed to reviewing this policy in partnership with Ralph Maybank School and Pembina Trails School Division," the nursery school's statement reads.
As It Happens has reached out to Ralph Maybank School for comment.
In an earlier interview with CTV, the nursery school's director said it was following a dress code laid out by the Pembina Trails School Division — but the school board told As It Happens no such code exists.
Written by Sheena Goodyear with files from Chloe Shantz-Hilkes.