BOYS have been placed in isolation and told to dye their hair amid claims they have broken strict uniform rules at a Bournemouth secondary school.

Year 7 pupils turning up for the first day of “big school” at the Bishop of Winchester Academy were not allowed to meet their new classmates and find their way around their new school.

Instead they were placed in cubicles in an isolation room and told to do their times tables.

Staff at the Mallard Road school claimed their hair was too short but parents disputed the claims and said there were scores of others with similar hair styles.

They told parents their children would not be allowed to go into class until their hair has grown.

But they suggested they might speed up the process if they dyed their children’s hair with root spray hair dye, normally used by men wishing to cover up grey hair, in a bid to make their sons’ hair look thicker.

“I had never heard of anything so ridiculous but I was so keen to get him into school that I bought some for £14,” said mum Kelly Dacey.

“Even after using it they said he couldn’t go into school because I hadn’t dyed the parting properly.

“The school’s behaviour is laughable but it’s actually serious for our children.”

She said her son, Connor, is shy and was already nervous about starting secondary school. “This has made it far worse” she added.

Another parent told how her son, also in Year 7, suffers from anxiety issues.

She said: “I have spent the whole holiday making sure he is prepared for starting big school, which is a huge step for him.

“He went in quite happily but within minutes he was put in isolation. He is now very unhappy.

“I would never break the uniform rules and I’m normally a quiet person but I feel I need to stand up for my son.

“We have done nothing wrong.

“It’s terrible that the boys are being treated in this way.

“Moving to a different school is daunting enough but when this happens it knocks their confidence.”

One dad told the Daily Echo: “I stood outside the school the following day and saw scores of other pupils with similar hair styles who were being allowed to go to class.

“There were girls plastered in make-up but the staff didn’t seem to care about that.

“This is a Christian school which claims to value its pupils but the staff clearly don’t care how much they’ve upset everyone.

“I don’t understand how they feel it’s acceptable to treat children like this, particularly on their first day in a new school when they feel very vulnerable.”

It is believed that around a dozen young boys are affected.

The rules state that hair should be no shorter than grade 3.

The parents we have spoken to said their boys have short hair at the back and sides, which is longer on the top.

The Echo contacted the school on two occasions and asked to speak to principal Paul McKeown but was told: “We do not wish to comment.”