Sheffield primary school’s clever World Book Day plan to help parents save money

Lowfield Primary School sent a notice out asking students to arrive in their night clothes rather than as a book character this World Book Day.

The idea behind it was that it would save families money and promote the idea of bedtime reading.

But one anonymous parent took to social media to complain about the policy - after they claimed the school was preventing children from emulating their favourite character.

In the post, they said: "Lowfield primary school, they are not allowing pupils to dress up as characters from books, they are telling children that it is just pyjamas only.

"A lot of parents and children are not happy about it due to spending money on costumes for the kids to wear, now the kids are getting told they can’t wear them."

But the school maintain children are not banned from turning up in a book-inspired outfit.

A spokesperson said: "We took a decision that to mark World Book Day this year we asked the children to dress up in their pyjamas to promote reading at bedtime and stop parents having to spend money on costumes.

"We sent a message out to parents of this effect but when when some explained they had already bought costumes, we said that's fine they can of course wear them.

"But it was never about saying to parents if you have bought a costume then you can't wear it - we are not at all."