MERSEYSIDE, U.K. -- A high school in England has banned students from wearing expensive coats to stop "poverty shaming" poorer children who can't afford them.
The school's head teacher sent home a letter, saying students at Woodchurch High School, located a few miles southwest of Liverpool, would not be allowed to wear designer jackets when they returned from Christmas break, the BBC reported.
The abolished coats sell for up to $1,200, according to CBS Detroit, which said there had been feedback from families worried that was the cost of a month's rent. Nearly half the building's more than 1,400 students come from homes that struggle financially, the station reported, and they feel peer pressure to keep up with their wealthier classmates.
The decision is a step toward "poverty proofing" the campus, according to the Independent.
Reaction on social media has been mixed, with some Twitter users applauding the move and others calling it "stupid."
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