Pizzas galore!

Her father, Phil Playfoot, said that his daughter was pursuing the case, even though she was leaving the Millais school, because it embodied an important principle.

Rings had been worn by Christians for many hundreds of years and Lydia wore hers as a symbol of her commitment to her faith, he said. Many thousands of young people had made the same commitment.

He claimed that Christianity was under attack from the forces of secularism: "I think what is happening in our culture more generally is that what I would describe as secular fundamentalism is coming to the fore, which really wants to silence certain beliefs and Christian views in particular. I think an important principle is at stake here, I think Christians should be respected for their views and beliefs.

"As other faiths are allowed to express their views through the wearing of headscarfs or the Kara bracelet of a Sikh, I think Lydia should be able to wear a ring as an expression of her faith," he told the BBC.

Mr Playfoot said that he had not put any pressure on his daughter to bring the court case. He claimed that his involvement with the Silver Ring Thing had happened after Lydia was banned from wearing the ring at school.

"Lydia is a free thinker, she is a young person in her own right," he told the BBC. "She’s not living out our beliefs or wishes, it’s something she wants to do for herself."

Stacey Wilkinson, administrator of the Silver Ring Thing UK, said: "We are supporting Lydia but can't comment on the case itself.

"The Silver Ring Thing is mainly in youth groups. We are trying to get into schools but it's a lot harder because of the Christian background that the course includes. We don't talk about contraception at all because it's about abstinence. In some cases we are going against what the government has said, but we want to give people a second option.

"Some people take the course but don't make the pledge, but it's a good thing that they've heard the options. It gives them the option to say no."

It is not the first time students have faced school bans over Christian symbols. Earlier this year Samantha Devine, a 13-year-old Catholic schoolgirl, was told not to wear a crucifix on a chain because it breached health and safety rules at The Robert Napier School, a non-denominational mixed school in Gillingham, Kent.

The school said the only exception it would make to its uniform rule would be if the jewellery was an essential part of a particular religion, which they did not feel was the case for Miss Devine. She was free to wear a crucifix as a small lapel badge, but not on a chain, the school ruled.

In 2005, 16-year-old Sam Morris was excluded from Sinfin Community School in Derby for a day after refusing to remove her cross and chain to comply with the school’s jewellery ban.

In November Nadia Eweida lost her legal battle to wear a crucifix while working as an air stewardess, but publicity over the case forced British Airways to review its uniform policy and allow religious symbols to be worn, although only in the form of small lapel badges.

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