Students from all four houses, Saltram, Smeaton, Sutton and Mayflower, participated in house assemblies this week to celebrate their achievements. They earnt house points throughout the year for 100% attendance, completing their SPARX online homework, gaining signatures on their house cards, and excelling in lessons. Each assembly celebrated those students who consistently completed these every week.

It wasn’t all classroom based points, students could also get involved in fun, extra-curricular activities to earn extra points. These events included the sporting challenges of dodgeball, bench ball, and a penalty shoot-out, as well as a photography competition. Staff also got involved, organising challenges like a thrilling staff netball tournament, and our very own ‘House-Brity’ Quiz.

Our Fun Fridays have also made a big impact this year. Students were given a time and location but not the event, building anticipation for what the house leaders had planned for that week. This was very well received, with hundreds of students taking part in activities like, a crossbar challenge, a Just Dance competition, and an artistic competition to name just a few.

Not only are the students making new friends and enriching their school experience, but they are also working on themselves through the House System’s nine ‘Virtues’—Motivation, Resilience, Confidence, Communication, Creativity, Courage, Community, Respect, and Generosity.

All these house points totalled up have led to Mr. Bullard’s Saltram House being this term's winner with over 9,500 points! All students in Saltram House will be rewarded with an exhilarating day out in the final week of term.

We are excited to relaunch the House System in September, featuring more activities, challenges, and a host of fun and interactive ideas to make it thrive! 

Our house leaders have reflected on their house’s success this year:

 

Mr Bullard: “I am very proud to lead Saltram House to victory this term. All the students across the school have come together and united as a house to gain those precious house points to be crowned the winners! 

It is not just about winning; it is about those connections with the Saltram students. Building a rapport with myself and each other has been a fantastic part of this year, with students gaining new friendships and experiencing something different within their school day. This will only flourish as we move into the next academic year."

 

Mr Hatherley: “This year, Sutton has been brilliant. Narrow losses have caused us to drop some places, but the margins are not a huge climb. We were victorious in the staff netball competition and were beaten by only one point in House-Brity Mastermind. With the final staff competition around the corner, it is still all to play for. I would be worried about Sutton next year if I were in the other houses!”

 

Mr Harvey: “This year, Smeaton has tackled numerous sporting challenges, consistently ranking near the top of the leaderboards. It's clear to me that Smeaton is not just a competitor but a tower of strength that is only getting stronger.”

 

Miss Booth: "This year, Mayflower House has been a big success! Our big day out in Year 7 showed a really enthusiastic and encouraging start to the house system. This was closely followed by our success at the dodgeball house challenge. In terms 3 and 4 we took the lead and, as a result, we were able to reward our top 40 contributors towards the house with a wonderful bowling trip. Although we haven’t won the final half-term, we are only a few points away from winning the year! It has been an absolute joy to lead Mayflower this year and I know we will have another amazing year in 2024-25.”

 

Congratulations to this year’s winners, Saltram house!