Original and often quirky independent school traditions are widespread  ? enabling the sector to live up to its name, says Katie Hughes
Pupils sliding down staircases in great halls, launching Cadbury?s Creme Eggs from trebuchets or pillow fighting in blindfolds may not be traditionally associated with an independent education, but they?re indicative of the free spirit and individualism that courses through the veins of the private sector. And they?re just the tip of the individuality iceberg.
It’s all about attitude
Some signs of a school?s individuality are harder to miss than others. Take Eton?s uniform of black tailcoat and waistcoat, Harrow?s dapper boater hat or Hill House School?s ?gold? jumper and knee breeches. The latter?s founders believed that a ?grey uniform produces grey minds? and set out, like many of their educational counterparts, to source ?something different?. As unconventional are the red dungarees worn by girls at Knighton House – apparently introduced to help them be seen in the school grounds. Or the mustard-yellow socks at Christ?s Hospital, possibly worn to ward off rats in days-gone-by. Or even the crimson capes at Queen Anne?s, these days saved for special occasions.
Uniforms aside, other less conventional practises can be spotted at Fettes College, where a pupil always interrupts leavers? speeches in pyjamas and a dressing gown. At Hanford, girls give names to the branches of the giant cedar tree they climb. And at Blundell?s, the ...