Cultural and Social Life at Stowe
Stowe's Heritage >

     

All our pupils are able to participate in a wide range of evening society meetings throughout the week. Across all areas, going far beyond the expected sport, drama and music, there is a host of activities which enable Stoics to take full benefit of all the opportunities open to them at Stowe. During their first year Stoics are encouraged by the Headmaster to participate in a new activity each term, to open up fresh areas of interest. No Stoic can ever complain of being bored or not having enough to do. Visit our Societies and Activities pages for further details.
There are House times and free time after prep for socializing across the Houses. Throughout the year House and inter-House events and competitions are held in the evenings and weekends.
From the full School productions to House drama festivals, the Theatre has long been a central pillar of the School's confidence and life. Whether it is a huge production of Grease or Les Misérables or an experimental work, the emphasis is on excellence and enjoyment.
Permeating the life of every member of the community is Music. All can experience the brilliance of the music ensembles and gifted soloists who are bound for musical careers, but the zest and fun of events such as the House Singing competition or the style of Dinner and Jazz evenings are testament to the diversity of musical activity within the School.
On Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday evenings, Sixth Formers can socialise in the Sixth Form Centre, while the Sixth Form Club provides a second supervised environment for the Upper Sixth. It is a cornerstone of Stowe's educational philosophy that boys and girls should know how to behave as young adults before they arrive at university.



Stowe's Heritage

     

"We shape our buildings. Thereafter they shape us." These words of Winston Churchill might well apply to Stowe, for the influence of the buildings and their landscape on Stoics has always been considerable. Indeed, they could be said to give the School one very special extra dimension, denied to more mundane settings. This aesthetic bonus is neatly encapsulated in a comment by JF Roxburgh, Stowe's founding Headmaster, that "every boy who goes out from Stowe will know beauty when he sees it for the rest of his life."
It is our desire that Stoics gain an appreciation of the great cultural significance of our buildings and landscape in which they live, work and play. All our first year pupils now participate in a Visual Education course, promoting an understanding of Stowe's architecture and landscape gardens in particular, so that they all have the opportunity of gaining new insights from their inspiring surroundings.
Visual Education has cross-curricular potential. Planning and teaching comes from the Classics, History and Art Departments. The course is as innovative in its approach as in its content. Great importance is attached to group project work, to the analysis and solution of problems through observation, research and discussion and to visual and oral presentations. With IT strongly involved and constant competition between twenty teams from over a hundred Stoics the course proves to be very lively.
Its inception has been greatly helped by financial support from The Hall Bequest and from the following Old Stoic architects: David Felce (Grafton 35), Oliver Churchill (Cobham 33), John Grice (Grafton 33), Martin Perry (Grenville 61) and Tinsley Galyean (Bruce 60).

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