WHEN children hit their teenage years they tend to gain a spirit of rebelliousness and a desire to express themselves.
But with their new-found individuality comes the pressure to look your best, especially in the days when what you are wearing gets instantly broadcast around the internet on social media.
Now the pupils at one school have voted to turn their back on their daily fashion parade after voting overwhelmingly to adopt a uniform of for the first time.
Youngsters of Westhill Academy, Aberdeen, even turned their backs on the chance to opt for a more smart-but-casual outfit of polo tops and sweaters, and instead picked formal shirts, ties and blazers for their daily attire.
The school has had a permanent 'come-as-you-please' dress-code since it opened 1979, but plans were made to change tack for the start of this academic year.
The pupils voted for shirts over polo tops (stock pic)
Alison Reid, the new head teacher at the 1,000-pupil secondary school, decided to make the switch after noticing a growing interest in uniforms among her pupils.
She said: "I took over as head teacher in August this year, and from when I was appointed I saw there was an appetite for introducing a uniform at the school.
"Instead of taking the decision to introduce one I decided to have a consultation which asked all the stakeholders in the school if Westhill Academy should have a uniform.
"I thought this was a good idea as I felt like I was hearing just one side of the argument.
"When I spoke to some of the pupils in the school their biggest concern was when they were representing the school at events and didn't seem to have an identity."
READ MORE: School uniform policy 'creating inequality amongst children'
Ms Reid added: "The school's been open for 39 years, and we had hoodies and a dress code, but this is the first time that they've had an actual uniform."
The results of the vote were decisively in favour of bringing in a smart uniform, with pupils backing the proposal by three to one.
Students were consulted throughout the process and the new uniform came into force on the first day of the new academic year last Tuesday.
Sajiyah Zahara, an S2 pupil at the school, said she thought herself and her classmates look "a lot smarter".
She said: "When I found out that we were actually getting a uniform, I was quite excited."
Orlagh Fraser, an S6 pupil, added: "It's definitely different, because you don't have to think about what you wear in the morning, which is definitely a good thing."
However, S6 pupil Shaan Singh was originally against the idea.
He said: "I did say that I didn't want it, but after wearing it, I feel like it's better.
"Previously I was at another school where we did have to wear a uniform and I wasn't a big fan of it.
"When I came here we were given a bit more freedom, and I didn't want that to be taken away, but I've come around to the idea."
READ MORE: Schools told to ditch blazers in purge on expensive uniform
Uniforms have become a thorny issue for some families in recent years, with the Scottish Parliament's education committee urging schools to step back from insisting upon expensive blazers and other items when setting out their dress code in an effort to spare less-well-off families budgets.
This year Headteachers were also told to stop sending pupils home if they have missing or dirty school uniform, after a wide-ranging inquiry into the impact of poverty on education.
Yet this follows a resurgence in school uniform within the state sector, with many adopting expensive policies of the private sector such as the introduction of more formal clothing.
Each of Scotland's 32 councils are responsible for the schools in their area, and there is no national policy on uniforms.
However, this year school clothing grants will now have a minimum level of £100 in all local authorities, after intervention by ministers to ensure a level playing field and end inequality.
The Scottish government said that about 120,000 families would benefit, with eligibility decided at a local level.
Annual costs for the change will be about £12m, with costs split between government and individual councils.
The debate between uniforms and casual clothes has been further complicated in recent years by moves to shift to a gender-neutral dress code which no longer requires girls to wear skirts and sport trousers instead.
READ MORE: Ministers heed call for gender-neutral school uniforms
The Scottish Government agreed that all pupils should be treated equally when it comes to what they wear last year following pressure from the Scottish Liberal democrats.
Ms Reid described the issue of the uniform as having been "bubbling away in the background for some time", but now the matter was settled.
She said: "Given how much we consulted them over the course of last year, we got all that done and dusted before the start of this year.
"All the conversations that we had with pupils and parents are in the past now, and the consensus was that they were ready to go when we came back.
"So far, we've had pretty much 100 per cent in uniform."
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