All students at Sandwell Academy are assigned a House that is linked to their Personal Tutor Group. These eight houses compete in the annual House Competition which encompasses activities and events through out the academic year. This can include after school clubs, inter-house sports competitions like football or the Sandwell Run. A weekly PT Quiz also contributes to this competition.
At the end of the year, the house with the most points wins the coveted House Trophy.
Previous House Winners
TBA
Hadley
No House Competition Took Place
Walters
Archer
Astle
Tolkien
Cadbury
Archer House is named after Baron Peter Kingsley Archer of Sandwell, who was a lawyer and member of the Labour party. Archer was born in Wednesbury and raised in the Black Country. He was the MP for Rowley Regis and Tipton and was committed to campaigning for human rights, including abolishing the death penalty. Due to his commitment and dedication to politics within the area he was awarded the title Baron Archer of Sandwell and in 2006 had the prestigious honour of having a House at the Academy named after him.
Astle House is named after West Bromwich Albion footballer Jeff Astle. Astle, a centre forward, started off his career with Notts County before signing for West Brom in 1964. Astle went on to play 361 games for the club, playing 361 games and scoring 174 goals. Astle scored in every round of the 1968 FA cup run, with his finest hour for the club coming in the final when he scored the winning goal earning himself the nickname ‘The King’. Astle sadly passed away in 2002 at the age of 59. The Jeff Astle Foundation was set up in his honour, raising awareness of brain injury caused through playing sport. The Academy are proud to use Astle House’ since the opening of the Academy in 2006.
Cadbury House is named after chocolate entrepreneur John Cadbury. Born in Birmingham in 1801, Cadbury set up a grocery store in Birmingham focusing on selling a range of chocolate products. Due to the success of his trade Cadbury turned his attention to manufacturing chocolate before entering into partnership with brother Benjamin to form Cadbury Brothers in 1847. They introduced their first branded chocolate bar in 1849. In 1861 the brothers acquired a site in Bourneville and started processing a range of chocolate products. Cadbury is now a multinational confectionary company which is world renowned and has been a House at the Academy since 200
Fraser house is named after Great British Gymnast Joe Fraser. Joe is one of our own, having studied at the Academy from 2010 until 2015. Joe represented Team GB throughout the youth age categories before making his senior debut at the European championships in 2017. Joe had his first success at international level winning Silver in the team event at the 2018 European championships, going one better in 2019 by winning the individual Gold in the Parallel bars. Joe went on to make his Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020, finishing 9th in the all-round individual final and 4th in the team event. We are very proud of Joe’s achievements, and recognised this by naming Fraser House after him in 2021.
Founded by Philip Hadley in 1964, the Hadley Group has been driving innovation in cold rollforming for nearly 60 years. Mr Hadley started building the machines that rolled steel, before moving into the tooling and steel profile supply. The Hadley Group remain unique in the industry, making their own production lines and tooling in-house having nurtured a wealth of engineering expertise. Hadley Group, under the direction of the currently family ownership, has grown to manufacture steel profiles around the world, with sites in Thailand, Dubai, USA, Netherlands and four in the UK and continues to invest in its own people, with apprentices becoming Senior Engineers, Mechanical Designers and Business Unit Directors.
Regis House is named after footballer Cyrille Regis. Regis stared his career with non-league club Hayes before being spotted and signed by West Bromwich Albion in 1977. Regis would go on to become a legend for the club playing 300 times for West Bromwich Albion. In 1984 he would move to Coventry City where he was a part of the 1987 F.A. Cup winning team. Regis was an iconic figure. A trailblazer in breaking down barriers, he was one of the first black footballers playing in the top flight of English football. He was also one of the first Black footballers to represent England. After his retirement, Regis became a supporter of a number of charities including Water Aid. Upon his death at the age of 59, the Cyrille Regis legacy trust was set up in his honour with the aim of breaking down barriers in local communities. In 2006 the Academy named a house in Regis's honour. In 2018, Sandwell Academy performing arts students were able to keep his legacy going, teaming up with The Albion Foundation to bring 1978:The Ultimate Goal to the stage. The play celebrated the life and success of the players known as the three degrees of Laurie Cunningham, Brendan Batson and Cyrille Regis.
Tolkien house is named after renowned author and poet J.R.R. Tolkien. Born in South Africa, Tolkien and his family moved to Birmingham at a young age. Tolkien would serve in the British army during World War 1, including fighting at the Battle of the Somme. On his return to England after the war, Tolkien would draw upon a number of his experiences to write a number of novels. Tolkien first published The Hobbit in 1937 and would go on to write and publish a number of other famous novels, non-more so than The Lord of the Rings (1951 – 1955). These novels would be taken on by Peter Jackson and made into fantasy adventure films. The work of Tolkien was honoured in 2006 with Sandwell Academy naming a House after him.
Walters house is named after actress Dame Julie Walters. Walters was born in in Edgbaston, but grew up in Smethwick. Walters started acting in TV roles, but rose to fame with her role in the 1983 Comedy Drama Educating Rita alongside Michael Caine. Walters has gone on to star in a number of blockbuster films including Billy Elliot, Mamma Mia!, Brave, Mary Poppins Returns and the Harry Potter franchise. She is the recipient of four British Television Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, two Emmy Awards, a BAFTA and a Golden Globe. She has also been nominated twice for an Academy Award at the Oscars. Julie Walters was honoured by the queen in 2017 by being named a Dame Commander of the British Empire. The house was named after Walters' achievements in 2006.