LIFTING the standards and morale of staff and students at a school which has been declared to be "failing" must be hugely difficult.

And no small part of that task in terms of lifting a school's image and building pride has to do with an identifiable and consistent uniform.

Secondary pupils will always rebel against school dress rules - teenagers have spent decades pushing them to the limit and beyond it.

Whether it's by rolling up skirts, shortening ties or attempting to sneak into class wearing the latest fashion accessory, many youngsters see any setting of standards as a challenge.

Darwen Moorland head Gareth Dawkins will not totally succeed in getting every pupil into similar outfits but he is quite right to try and should be backed by all parents.

Such action will be a positive step to strengthen the school's identity in the eyes of the community.

No one is saying that schools should be producing a nation of robotic non-questioners but it is fair to say that today's pupils are not as proscribed as their parents and grandparents were.

And there is a widespread feeling that as well as improving academic skills, the coming generation of teenagers needs toughening up to be properly prepared for the disciplines of the world of work.