Blue is banned. Natural red (like Julieanne Moore) is permitted. But Rihanna red is out. Purple, green and pink are also frowned upon. Bleach blonde - who knows?

This is one of those stories that surfaces from time to time as schools attempt to legislate for changing fashions. We've previously had hair length, skirt length, heel height and extent of nose piercing giving grief.

It's up to the schools to set the rules and where they have, I can see the sense in them being reinforced. But sometimes you do wonder if schools don't make a lot of a fuss about very little in the first place. The rainbow hair colour trend is not that awful, is it?

It's one of those trends which, in every sense, the pupils will grow out of. Sometimes you get the feeling school heads rail against these fads entirely on the grounds that they're just that - passing fashion.

My sons used to attend a school where the dress code specifically banned "moccasin type" shoes. This directly targeted Kickers which were a fashion in the day. I never understood why. They were also extremely practical shoes and widely copied so not necessarily expensive.

What was the big problem with them? Too cool for school I suppose. As with blue hair ... Bright and inoffensive. But that's you in detention anyway, Katy Perry.