A County Antrim school has asked a judge to back its decision to suspend a pupil who refused to cut his hair.

Lawyers for Ballyclare High School asked the High Court to say its code of conduct on pupils’ appearance was lawful.

Grant Stranaghan, a GCSE student, was suspended for three days in November for having collar-length hair.

The school principal and Grant’s parents were in court for the judicial review application.

Children’s Commissioner Patricia Lewsley, who has been asked to give an opinion on the case, was also present.

A lawyer for the school’s board of governors told Mr Justice Weatherup that haircuts were an issue of uniform and outward dress.

Grant Stranaghan’s strangly locks have caused problems.

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Letters to Independent.ie

Your articles re one-in-five children losing interest in school, and the clamping down on funding of private schools, leads me to share with your readers one option they might not have considered — that of home-schooling.

It’s the ultimate private school. Yes, it’s legal. It’s even constitutional. Yes, it’s very possible to do even without being a teacher yourself.

Yes, your children will have social skills (actually, whisper it softly, even better social skills than if they were at school, because they’ll be mixing with a wide variety of people, not just age-peers and one adult).

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Parents who educate children at home ‘must pass’ competency tests

AS many as 2,000 children may be receiving their education at home — without the necessary permission from the authorities.

Under the Education Welfare Act, 2000, parents who home educate their children are legally obliged to register their children with the National Education Welfare Board (NEWB).

Last year, 316 parents registered with the NEWB for the scheme, but it is estimated that a further 1,500 to 2,000 may be ignoring this requirement.

It is claimed that many parents refuse to comply because they feel that it infringes on their constitutional right to home educate a child.

Under articles 42.1, 42.2, 42.3.2 of the Constitution, parents are seen as the primary educator of their child and have permission to home-educate them.

As of 2000 however, NEWB was given responsibility for the educational welfare of six-year-olds to 16-year-olds, and any parent who wishes to home school their child must now first go through an assessment procedure.

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