Figure 1.--This photograph shows a class at St. Ninians school. It looks to be children about 9 years old. The boys mostly wear grey shirts and short trousers, the girls wear white shirts and gym slips or suspener skirts.
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Figure 1.--This photograph shows a class at St. Ninians school. It looks to be children about 9 years old. The boys mostly wear grey shirts and short trousers, the girls wear white shirts and gym slips or suspener skirts. |
This St. Ninians is a state primary school. As most Scottish primary by the 1960s, it was a coeducational school. The school in the 1960s require a standard British school uniform, although there was considerable differences among the chilren as to what they wore. The boys wore blazers jumpers, and mostly short trousers. The girls wear gymslips an suspener skirts. All the children wear ties.
This photograph was taken in 1968. Prep schools had from the beginning required uniforms. State elementary schools for the most part di not begin requiring uniforms until the 1960s. It was up to each school. Some did not adopt uniforms, but many did. The uniforms adopted were standard British school uniform styles.
This St. Ninians is a Scottish state primary school. It would be for children from about 6-11 years of age. It shoul not be confuse withanother Scottish school also named St. Ninians which was a preparatory school. Scottish and English preparatory schools were private school preparing children for entrance into public schools--private secondary schools.
This St. Ninians is locate at Grenock near Glasgow.
The chilren in 1968 wear standard British school uniform styles. The boys wear grey shirts with ties. Some boys wear jumpers an two boys wear blazers. The boys mostly wear short trousers, although one bo wears longs. The girls wear white shirts and ties with gym slips or suspener skirts. While the school clearly ha a strong uniform rule, the chilren are notable for the variety of garments worn.
Figure 2.--Boys wear both white an grey shirts with ties. Most appear to wear short pants, but one boy in a blazer wears longs. Several boys wear jumpers, both plain ones and ones with trim in the school colors. |
The school uniform garments worn by children at St. Ninians include the following. While the school clearly ha a strong uniform rule, the chilren are notable for the variety of garments worn.
The photograph is a school class portrait for which the children would have taken off their caps. As aresult we o not know if caps were require.
Two of the boys, but none of the girls wear blazers. It is not clear what color the blazers are. Presumably if this is a prep school, blazers woul have been required. At the time, it may have just beem boys that had to wear blazers. By the 1980s blazers were commonly worn by both boys and girls.
About half of the boys wear grey "V"-neck jumpers (pullovers). Some are plain grey jumpers while others have jumpers with trim in the school colors at the neck. One boy seems to wear a white or light colored jumper with a crew neck. The girls do not wear jumpers, but one girl wears a cardigan sweater.
The children wear grey and white shirts. Grey shirts were worn at British schools because they did not snow dirt and stain like white shirts. The grey shirt was everyday wear and the white shirt for dress occasions. At St. Ninian's all the girls wear white shirts, perhaps they were considered to be so neat that they did not need grey shirts or perhaps they were told in advance abiout the school photograph an all wanted to look their best. The boys wwar both grey an white shirts. Presumably they were told about the school photograph and perhaps only some remembered to change into their dress white shirts. I am not sure if the boys and girls wear the same shirt styles.
All of the children wear the school tie. It is the only garment besides the shirts that both boys and girls wear.
Most of the boys wear grey short trousers. HBC is not sure what the school regulations were. One boy in a blazer wears long pants. Generally at prep schools in the 1960s the schools had regulations requiring that boys wear shorts. It is not clear why this boy wears long trousers.
Figure 3.--The boys wear grey kneesocks, although one boy looks to be wear balck ones. The girls wear white kneesocks. |
None of the boys appear to be wearing kilts.
The girls all wear grey gym slips and skirts. This seems to have been an option as several girls wear each style. The girls in gym slips where different styles, one with a straight cut bodice and another with a "V" cut to better show the tie. Other girls wear plain skirts, all with suspender attachments.
The boys wear grey kneesocks, although one boy looks to be wear balck ones. Some boys wear kneesocks with the school colors in top cuff bands. Other boys wear plain grey kneesocks. All the boys wear kneesovks. Some boys have let them fall down, but they all wear kneesocks. The girls wear white kneesocks.
The boys appear to wear lace up leather shoes although the image is to indestinct to dertemine. No boys appear to be wearing sandals. Some of the girls wear strap shoes.
The school clearly required a school uniform and appears to have been realtively strict about this. All of the choldren with few exceptions appear to be wearing school uniform garments--but there is a variety of garments. The school apparently insisted on uniform, but was not real strict about the style of the uniform garments. One boy appears to be wearing a non-uniform sweater. While most boys wear shorts, one boy wears long trousers. Scottish boys before the 1960s generally wore short trousers to school, but this was because their parents chose shorts, not because the school require them. When schools adopted uniforms in the 1960s, usyually they require the boys to wear traditional grey school shorts. The boys wear both plain and school color jumpers and kneesocks. The girls wear gym slips in a variety of styles as well as suspender skirts.
Related Chronolgy Pages in the Boys' Historical Web Site
[The 1880s]
[The 1930s]
[The 1940s]
[The 1950s]
[The 1960s]
[The 1970s]
[The 1980s]
Related Style Pages in the Boys' Historical Web Site
[Long pants suits]
[Short pants suits]
[Socks]
[Eton suits]
[Jacket and trousers]
[Blazer
[School sandals