The House System is used to encourage hard work and good manners through healthy competition. Children are placed in one of four houses when they join the school – siblings are always in the same house.
Each of the four houses are named after one of the founding families of the school. There are inter-house competitions throughout the school year, house points are awarded for good work and good behaviour and each house hosts a whole-school fundraising event for a chosen charity.
Charities we have supported in the past include: Mental Health Research UK, Honey Pot Charity, Rainbow Trust and Guide Dogs for the Blind.
Starting off the day with the house hymns, the Big House Competition is a fantastic event to raise the team spirit of all four houses. The afternoon is not about winning but participating and having fun! Activities challenge the children to work collaboratively in teams, inspired by key values such as team spirit, resilience, thoughtfulness and enthusiasm.
One of the most cheerful traditions at Finton must be the Thomson House Charity Crazy Hair Day. Every year children arrive at school with bright, colourful hair inspired by a theme like jungle animals or rainbows.
Last year Nunneley raised money for the Honey Pot Children’s Charity through their annual sale in February. Families are encouraged to bring and buy as many heart shaped biscuits and peppermint creams as they can to support this great cause.
1,2,3, GO! Our children usually cannot wait to start their Easter egg hunt in the playground. Full of excitement and guided by the Macmillan House Captains, they leave no rock untouched to find as many mini chocolate eggs as they can. Another all-time favourite is face painting at break time, which turns all our Fintonians into bunnies.
Another sugar-fuelled event in the Finton House calendar, the Charrington Cake Sale in May is always popular with the children! Last year all money raised went to Mental Health Research UK, which was set up by a father of a former Finton House pupil. The whole school community including parents, pupils and staff get involved by baking, buying, sorting, selling and eating cakes, biscuits and buns.
by Year 6 School Reporter Yoshua A.