With his mother’s permission teenager Sam Lewis had highlights put in his hair for a family holiday in Egypt in January.

Nothing was said to the 14-year-old about his two-tone styling when he returned to The Towers School with his brother Joel, 13, after his foreign trip – until last Thursday.

Then he was told to get the peroxide locks snipped from his hair before he would be allowed back in the classroom as the school told him the style did not represent it in a good light.

That decision left his mother Teresa, who is landlady of the Riverside Inn in South Ashford, hopping mad.

She said: “I understand and appreciate the strict school uniform rules and my sons are always smartly dressed in blazers, ties and the correct shoes.

“I could even understand the hair rule but why wait six weeks until it has almost grown out before suddenly effectively excluding him?

“The most ironic thing is that as a promising soccer star he was told on the day he was chosen to represent the school and travelled with the team for a vital away football match that they won 1-0 – and he scored the winning goal.”

Banned from school on Friday morning Sam was at the hairdressers as soon as they opened having the highlights removed and within a couple of hours was back in the classroom.

Head teacher Malcolm Ramsey was unavailable for comment, but assistant head Ray Hughes confirmed that Sam and Joel Lewis always followed school uniform rules and were always smartly turned out.

But the school did not wish to discuss the issue of Sam Lewis’ hairstyle.

Mr Hughes said: “We have a set of rules but we do not wish to give a view at present as the parent has been referred to the complaints procedure.”