After months of spirited debate eliminated one House team after another, the final of the Junior Debating Society’s Inter-House Competition pitted Laxton versus Crosby. Speaking for the proposition “This House believes all teenagers should have a Saturday job”, Laxton’s team of Izzy Horrocks-Taylor and Thomas Caskey made a convincing case against Crosby’s opposition of Charlie Martin and Ossian Finch. Laxton were judged the winners and took home the Mather Cup.
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The Debating Society took six debaters to Bedford on 12 February for the Eastern Region round of the Oxford Union Society’s annual Oxford Schools competition, the largest British Parliamentary school-level debating competition in the world. The competition offers pupils an excellent chance to develop their skills and confidence in public speaking, thoughtful argumentation and analytical problem solving.
Polly Brown (W) and Jacob Jones (Ldr) were among the five pairs of debaters from the region who were invited to join 120 of the best performing teams from the UK, Ireland and the international rounds, at the Finals Day at the Oxford Union in late March.
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The debate team of Saul Agar Ward (B), Cecily Wells (L) and Liana Snape (N) successfully won both the first and second rounds, and have qualified to compete in early March at the East Midlands Regional Final of the English-Speaking Union’s Schools’ Mace, the oldest and largest debating competition for schools in England.
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The Nottingham Debating Union’s Nottingham Schools, held in early February, offers both novices and experienced debaters the opportunity to compete against others from across the country, with four rounds of debating for every team. This year, six pairs of senior debaters enjoyed their first experience of an external competition. Jack Campbell (F) placed 8= out of a field of 80 speakers, and the debate teams of Sam Chu (F) and Henry Watson (B) in the Novice Tab, and Jack Campbell (F) and Penny Hodgson (D) in the Overall Tab both placed fifth, which was an excellent result.
