To explain what it is and, above all, what are the benefits of the traditional house system in a British school, we must go beyond the classic comparison with the mythical Harry Potter film saga. The house system is a very useful tool for values education, but, above all, it builds and fosters "community", a sense of belonging to a community that is also projected beyond the classroom.

The house system is a very common feature in British schools, both in Coruña British International Schoool and in the other schools in the Globeducate British International Schools cluster in Spain, France, Italy and Portugal. It helps to build community spirit, to develop a sense of identity and belonging, and to celebrate achievements, both their own and those of others.

As at CBIS, all students and staff belong from day one to one of these four Houses. Here at CBIS we use the names of prestigious UK universities: Durham, Oxford, Cambridge and York. As in the other schools in the group, the House System reinforce and project through the whole school community the core values of our school: Enrich, Challenge, Shape and Achieve.

While the House System has always existed at Coruña British International School, this year it has taken centre stage. In addition to the usual practice of awarding points for good behaviour and for practising and promoting core values, we have launched events and initiatives in which the whole school community actively participates, feeling part of a team, of a community, involved and committed, such as the dance competition, the maths olympiads, and many more.

In addition to a re-styling of the logos of each of the Houses, aligned with the new visual identity of the school, a T-shirt competition was organised and we are working on encouraging songs for each of them, which will undoubtedly be very useful to motivate the rest of the classmates.

Social responsibility

Likewise, a few weeks ago we launched the solidarity campaign "4 Houses, 4 Causes", linking each of our houses with external organisations to promote the importance of social responsibility among students, creating four working teams: 

• Environment Team: We Sustaintability
• Proximity Aid Team: Banco de Alimentos de A Coruña
• Emergency Aid Team: Aldeas Infantiles
• Team Fight against Cancer or Rare Diseases: Aladina Foundation

If last March we managed to raise almost 500 euros for the "Aladina Foundation & Jon Rahm Golf 4 Kids Project" through the 5th Parents & Kids Golf Tournament, this month the CBIS educational community raised almost 2,500 euros with the Readathon, which will go to Aldeas Infantiles and the Aladina Foundation.

In the coming weeks, we will hold beach clean-ups in collaboration with We Sustainability and organise food collections that we will donate to the Food Bank of A Coruña, thus linking the House System to the Globeducate Agenda to address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for 2030.

In this way, and with other initiatives in the pipeline, we hope not only to create a great sense of community within the school, but also to show our students that they can make a difference.