26 October 2023 , 13:58
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A teenager was put into isolation at school after teachers said his mullet hairstyle was 'too extreme', his mum claims.
Toby Quinn, 15, was left fuming after his teachers said the famous Aussie-style trim was 'unacceptable' and 'unprofessional' and gave him a week to chop it off. His mum said the schoolboy was separated from his classmates and kept in isolation for an entire day at St Aidan's Catholic Academy in Sunderland.
Ironically, he had previously been punished the same way for having his hair too short - but was now told it was too long. Several schools in Australia have now banned the iconic hairstyle, which rose to prominence in the 70s and 80s, and made a comeback Down Under last year.
But it is believed to be the first time a British school has clamped down on the mullet in recent years after it began coming back into fashion in the UK. Once made famous by the likes of Jason Donovan, Rod Stewart and Andre Agassi modern celebs like Miley Cyrus and Rihanna have all sported the do.
The hairdo was branded 'unacceptable' and 'unprofessional' (Naomi Jenkins / SWNS)
Toby's hair was branded 'too extreme' (Naomi Jenkins / SWNS)Toby's mum Naomi, 47, said the school considered her son's new haircut as extreme after recently changing their haircut policy. Mum-of-two Naomi, of Ashbrooke, Sunderland, said: "His teachers said they'd changed the haircut policy and it had to go.
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"They said that it wasn't professional and he wasn't allowed to have it and was told to cut it off. I don't know why a 15 year old needs to be considered professional. The general gist was that it was considered extreme. He did get isolated for having it, he got separated from the school community and he was there for the rest of the day.
"He's been in isolation previously for having his hair too short. They didn't allow skin fades. Strangely they relaxed that haircut rule and they were allowed to have skin fades. He was the only boy with a mullet in school and they didn't like it.
"Staff told me he had to have his mullet cut off. I was told in a meeting it had to be cut off. That was about four weeks ago, they'd given him seven days to get rid of the hair."
The teenager was initially given a week to chop of his locks but teachers extended the deadline when he revealed his plans to raise money for charity. On Tuesday, Toby had his mullet cut off for Newcastle Hospitals Charity to support a ward which saved his grandad's life last year.
Toby has now had his mullet shaved off for charity after the debacle (Naomi Jenkins / SWNS)
Toby's new hair (Naomi Jenkins / SWNS)Naomi, who is a hairdresser herself, added: "We told them he's decided to raise money and they said he could have a couple of weeks He wasn't happy at all though to lose the mullet, he said he was fuming. But he's come to terms with it, he's had a few weeks to digest it." Toby has managed to rake in over £340 in donations so far after setting up a fundraising page three weeks ago.
Naomi added: "He thought it would be good to get something positive out of a pretty rubbish situation. I suggested it would be good to raise money for the unit that saved his grandad last year. We started three weeks ago. His target was £200, but he raised over £340 now. But he's a typical teenager so he's pretty chilled about it all."
Toby said: "I was fuming when my mam told me the school said my mullet had to go. But then I thought about doing the fundraiser and making a bit of money for charity and I felt better about it. My mam said about the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle because they saved my granddad last year and maybe I could help other people who have had heart attacks too."
The Mirror contacted St Aidan's Catholic Academy for comment.
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