text: The mother of a high school student who has been prevented from attending classes as a consequence for not wearing the right style shoes has expressed her outrage over the 'ridiculous' situation. Riley Filmer, 14, turned up for classes wearing new shoes on the first day of term at McClelland College, in Melbourne's south-east, only to be told that the black soft-leather lace-ups did not meet uniform standards. The Year Eight student was prevented from attending her classes for the day, and has not been allowed back into the classroom since the incident, which her mother Anne Parker claims has disadvantaged and excluded her daughter. Riley Filmer, 14, has been prevented from attending classes at her Melbourne high school because her shoes do not meet the strict uniform guidelines . The secondary school's policy outlined in the 2015 Personal Learning Journal states that girls are to wear 'black leather lace-up school shoes (not fashion heels)' for both summer and winter uniforms, a guideline which Ms Parker said Riley's shoes meet. Ms Parker said that after going through five pairs of shoes in four school terms, she decided that her daughter needed a more practical and comfortable shoe to meet her needs. 'Rain, hail, or shine Riley has to walk to catch the bus, and then switch to another bus to get to school because of my work, and so we decided to look into a different type of shoe than the ones we had been buying,' Ms Parker told Daily Mail Australia. 'Is it that big a deal that my daughter has shoes they don't care for? Kids walk and skate, and catch a bus or a train, not every child gets driven to school. The rules need to cater for comfortable and practical shoes,' she said. The rubber-soled soft leather lace-ups were pointed out by a teacher on the first day of term, and Riley was taken to the school's office, where she was offered a pair of shoes from lost property, and remained until the end of the day. Ms Parker was not contacted to let her know that her daughter had been taken out of class, and said that she has had no contact with the principal of the school, Amadeo Ferra, despite Mr Ferra issuing a statement on Thursday reinforcing the uniform guidelines. The secondary school's policy states that girls are to wear 'black leather lace-up school shoes (not fashion heels)', which Ms Parker said the shoes comply to . Ms Parker said  her daughter needed a more practical and comfortable shoe to meet her needs . 'I just can't make sense of this. They've shifted the goal posts on what they are expecting of the uniform. When I spoke to the vice-principal yesterday I was told that her shoes aren't the type of shoes they're looking for, even though they are black leather lace-ups,' she said. Ms Parker was informed that the school was looking for shoes with more of a heel, but has been left baffled as to why her daughter is being punished for a non-existent rule. 'Why has she not been allowed to attend class while this grey area is being cleared up? If I decided to pull her out of school for four days, I would be in trouble. But for some reason they can pull my daughter out of classes simply because they don't like her shoes'. The 14-year-old has not been allowed back into classes since Monday, which Ms Parker said has caused significant issues when it comes to her daughter completing her school work. 'The school said that she hasn't been given an in-school suspension, but I don't know how else to look at it. She can't go to class. What is that if not a suspension?' Ms Parker said. 'She has been allowed to approach each of her teachers at the beginning of the lesson to ask for work, and some have given her work, but some haven't,' she said. 'It's the start term and so she is really struggling to complete work because she's not in class to have things explained to her.' Ms Parker also said that she pointed out to the school that being unable to attend classes and prevented from joining in with her classmates was exclusion, which went against the school's own policy. The school offered to buy Riley a pair of shoes which met the standards of the uniform policy, but Ms Parker said that she had declined the offer as she did not understand why her daughter was not able to wear comfortable shoes that she already owned. Ms Parker said that her daughter was being excluded from classes, which breached McClelland College's own policy on bullying and harassment . McClelland College's principal Amadeo Ferra said that the school was sticking by the uniform policy . Mr Ferra released a statement on Thursday addressing the issue. 'Our students are expected to wear black leather lace-up shoes. Shoes with a flat sole — ‘skate-style shoes’ — are not acceptable,' Mr Ferra said. 'We have done everything to assist the family concerned, including offering the student a pair of appropriate shoes,' he said. 'We still expect the student to wear the appropriate shoes but will be ensuring she receives regular classroom teaching, which is what we have always wanted,' reported The Herald Sun. Mr Ferra said that McClelland College's uniform policy was set by the school council, and involved consultation with the school community. Ms Parker said that she was disappointed and frustrated with the school, and couldn't understand why her daughter's shoes were drawing so much attention when the school had much larger issues. 'I had another parent say to me that she couldn't believe they were worried about school shoes when there are students walking around the local shops in school hours,' she said. 'Other parents have thanked me for sticking up for the kids and not letting the issue be swept under the carpet.' 'It seems trivial and sad when we look at what's going on in society and with kids these days. I just find it ridiculous'. Ms Parker has contacted her local MP, and has also submitted a complaint with the Victorian Board of Education, and hopes to get a response within the next two days. McClelland College has been contacted for comment.
target: Riley Filmer has been prevented from attending class because of her shoes .
  She was told that her shoes do not comply with McClelland College's rules .
  The policy states girls are to wear 'black leather lace-up school shoes'
  Riley's mother said the shoes comply and are comfortable and practical .
  The 14-year-old has not been allowed to attend classes for three days .