On entry, pupils are allocated to a House which they support through their work and involvement in activities and events. There are three Houses at Stover School: Victoria Courtney, Mary Templer, and Elizabeth Seymour. Each House is led by a House Leader, who is a member of staff, and a House Captain, who is a Year 6 pupil in the Preparatory School and a Sixth Form prefect in the Senior School.
By allocating pupils into houses, we believe it nurtures them with a strong spirit of solidarity and loyalty and encourages all pupils to engage with those outside their year group through its vertical system.
It gives pupils a sense of belonging, regardless of age and ability, and it enables pupils to make a contribution, no matter how small, to a greater whole. Pupils in different age groups are able to develop their leadership, motivational and organisational skills through their roles as Heads of House and House Prefects.
Through the House system pupils are actively encouraged to participate in a wide range of organised, keenly contested, inter-house activities. These activities range from music to sports to debating. They are always excellent fun and run throughout the year. The full programme of events includes something for everyone, and the award of an overall House Trophy ensures that every pupil’s contribution is important and valued.
House Points are given as a positive encouragement to pupils and may be awarded for:
- Consistently good work in class or prep, in relation to a pupils’ ability.
- An outstanding piece of work as a one-off.
- Good class test results.
- Being willing to help staff or other pupils.
- Performing well relative to ability in exams.
All House Points are written in academic diaries and logged by staff electronically. House Points are totalled at the end of each term and the House with the highest number of points wins the House Cup at the end of the academic year.