Houses
The House System
The house system in place at Bedminster Down School means that students are placed in one of our four houses that are named after local philanthropists, who used their wealth and resources to improve the circumstances of those less fortunate to make Bristol and the world a better place.
They are:
-
Elizabeth Blackwell
-
John James
-
Hannah More
-
Robert Southey
Each house has a Head of House and an Assistant Head of House who support students with all aspects of school life and work closely with parents and carers.
A series of “House events” are organised throughout the school year, fostering a spirit of friendly rivalry and allowing our students to develop a sense of pride in working for others as well as for themselves. House points are awarded based on participation at these events and also recognise students whose behaviours support the school ethos, such as helping staff at whole-school events, leading tours of the school for visitors, or simply trying hard in the classroom.
The Tutoring system
At Bedminster Down School our tutor groups are organised using a horizontal tutoring model; meaning that students are placed in tutor groups with children in the same year group as themselves. Each house contains two tutor groups from each year group, 7-11. We find that our tutoring model complements the vertical house system nicely: within their tutor group students can develop strong relationships with their peers as well as their tutor, who becomes the first point of contact for parents and carers, but also students can develop a sense of ‘belonging’ within the whole-school community.
Tutor sessions provide the opportunity for regular routines to support students in developing their organisation, punctuality and independence as well as literacy through our reading programme.
Pastoral care, support and guidance is extremely important to us at Bedminster Down School and we pride ourselves on the work that we do in order to ensure that all children feel safe and happy in their school.
