House Competition Comes to an Exciting Close
The House competition came to an exciting conclusion this week, following a busy Trinity term of academic, sporting and creative challenges. With points closely contested across the final weeks, pupils from Elgar, Ottley, Whiteladies and Wylde continued to represent their Houses with enthusiasm, commitment and strong House spirit, ensuring the final standings remained competitive until the very end.
The final term of the academic year began with Junior House Badminton, with Whiteladies securing first place just ahead of Ottley. After a slower start earlier in the year, this marked the beginning of a strong Trinity Term for Whiteladies, as they looked to climb the overall House table.
For the second year running, Ottley finished ahead of Elgar in a keenly contested Spelling Bee in the Lecture Theatre at the start of May. Their excellent performance helped Ottley move into second place overall and added further momentum to their House campaign.
In the Rubik’s Cube race, Wylde continued their impressive record, having secured first place in the competition every year since its introduction. A strong first and second-place finish demonstrated their continued strength in the event. Wylde then followed this with success in House Mathematics, allowing them to push towards the top of the standings.
Elgar responded with first place in Junior Debating, hoping to regain the momentum they had built earlier in the year. Whiteladies, however, continued to impress, with first-place finishes in Boys’ Cricket and Inters Debating helping them make up their earlier deficit and move further up the table.
Their progress was strengthened by an excellent performance in the two House Dance competitions at the end of June. With a ‘country’ theme, all four Houses impressed with their cowboy hats and line dancing routines, but Whiteladies secured first place in both age groups.
This meant that, as the final week approached, only eight points separated Ottley in first place and Whiteladies in fourth. With Sports Day always a crucial part of the House calendar, the final events were set to play an important role in deciding the overall House trophy.
Across all three Sports Day events, the competition was fiercely contested, with excellent levels of participation across all Year groups and an impressive display of red, blue, orange and yellow face paint. At the Junior Sports Day, the Houses were closely matched, with Elgar taking first place in the Year Seven boys’ competition, Whiteladies in the Year Seven girls’, Ottley in the Year Eight boys’ and Wylde in the Year Eight girls’. In Year Nine, Wylde secured first place in the boys’ competition, while Ottley finished first in the girls’. In Year Ten, Elgar took first place in the boys’ competition and Whiteladies in the girls’.
At the Seniors Sports Day, Whiteladies and Wylde performed particularly strongly, with Wylde finishing first overall in the girls’ competition and second in the boys’, while Whiteladies secured first place in the boys’ competition and second in the girls’.
Across the Sports Day events, Whiteladies achieved the highest number of points, with Ottley and Wylde finishing joint second and Elgar in fourth. With the competition so close in the final days, the wait for the results was especially exciting.
The Trinity Term overall standings were:
1st = Whiteladies, 62 points
2nd = Ottley, 56.5 points
3rd = Wylde, 45.5 points
4th = Elgar, 40 points
These results led to the final House standings for the academic year:
1st = Ottley, 151.5 points
2nd = Whiteladies, 147.5 points
3rd = Wylde, 146 points
4th = Elgar, 139 points
Congratulations to Ottley on being crowned overall House champions for the academic year and well done to all pupils who have represented their Houses with such commitment, enthusiasm and House spirit throughout the year.
Miss A Davison, Teacher of History & Politics and Senior House Leader
