All students and staff are allocated a House which allows them to be part of a supportive ‘family’. Houses are used for sporting, enterprise and active learning opportunities and provide much of the life and soul of the college. The House motto of ‘Proud, Strong, Confident and Kind’ drives the ethos we aim to embed in every student through the work of the Houses.

House events take place throughout the year, and provide traditions which staff and students can throw themselves into together, with friendly competition and opportunities for personal growth and leadership built in for good measure. Our unique ‘Patch Factor’, Field Gun Challenge and Staring competitions have become important milestones in the year for students and staff to see the talents, capability and sense of fun we have in our student population.

The Houses also form the basis of our tutoring structure. Group identity is a big part of college life and we encourage students and staff to think of house tutor groups as a ‘family’ who provide encouragement for each other. Experienced Heads of House act as pastoral leaders for all students in their house, with the additional support of two experienced Learning Mentors and an Inclusion Coordinator.

In Years 7 and 8 students are placed in tutor groups with other students of their age.

Students in Years 9, 10 and 11 are in mixed age tutor groups. This enables opportunities for leadership, peer mentoring and support on both an organised and informal basis.

House assemblies take place every week, as well as year group assemblies when they are needed. Every fortnight a tutorial lesson is used to further develop ‘Proud, Strong, Confident and Kind’ traits. These take place in a variety of settings and with the tutor group, year group, or the whole House working together.