Aluredian 19
Did you know?
How much do you know about King's
houses?
• The school was originally divided into a
Headmaster's house and a School house.
In 1881 pupils in the Headmaster's
house had to pay an extra 19 guineas per
year. Their accommodation was slightly
enhanced and they had a more
substantial food allowance
• The Headmaster's house comprised King
Alfred and Bishop Fox dormitories, while
the School house dormitories were Meynell
and Woodard. All houses were situated on
the two floors of the main building now
occupied by King Alfred house alone
• The current house system was not
introduced until 1930, the year of the
school's 50th anniversary
• Prior to the opening of Pyrland Hall
(now King's Hall School), juniors aged
8-13 were housed on a separate landing.
At various times this was called Meynell,
King Edward, or just plain Junior house
• In 1946 Bishop Fox house moved
down South Road to Fullands. Boys were
allowed to bring a bicycle to school to cut
down the travelling time
• Gatcombe has been used by multiple
houses. Claimed first by Carpenter
(which was formed in 1952) and then
Tuckwell (formed 1965) it was extended
greatly to become the new home for
Bishop Fox in 1986
• After the purchase of the Convent site
in 1977, Tuckwell, Woodard and the
newly formed Neate's houses moved
across the road. Neate's ceased with the
sale of the Convent in 2002
• When girls were admitted into the sixth
form at King's, they were originally
allocated to one of the existing boys'
houses, with separate sleeping
accommodation on the top floors of the
Headmaster's house and the current Art
department. In 1991 Meynell became
the first dedicated girls' house, followed
by Carpenter in 1994 and Taylor in 1997
• A house solely for day pupils, Perratt's,
existed from 1983. It ceased in 1994 after
which date all houses took 13-18 year olds
and a mix of boarding and day pupils
• Our current arrangement dates from
2002 when Tuckwell and Woodard
moved into new accommodation blocks
officially opened a year later by Prince
Edward, Earl of Wessex
Archives
by Alison Mason
Members of the football team have
been researching the school's original
cold weather sport - football. They
produced a display which can currently
be seen in the Woodard Room.
Pupil projects: Hugo Dunn, Rob
Cameron and Jess Kennedy researched
school life in the 1970s. Their display
was a great talking point at a recent
1975-77 Reunion.