International Debaters

A debating duo headed to the Cambridge Union after qualifying for the finals of the International Competition for Young Debaters.

Amelie in Year 9 and Hailey in Year 8 did fantastically well to make it through to finals’ day, where they took on 52 other teams. The annual competition for Year 10 students and below, run by the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, is the world’s largest British Parliamentary Format junior debating competition, attracting keen debaters from all over the globe.

The pair did brilliantly in the first three rounds, defeating seven teams out of nine. Going into the fourth and final round, they needed a first or a second to break to the semi-finals; despite a valiant performance, they placed third on the motion, ‘This House Regrets the rise in short-form media’, but still finished an impressive 12th in a competition that started with over 1000 team entries; Amelie also finished 20th on the individual speaker tab – the highest of any English participant.

At the start of the academic year, South Hampstead was crowned the best school in the UK for pupil voice, testament to our excellent track record in prestigious competitions and commitment to Debate Hub – our award-wining partnership programme which inspires pupils across the UK to find their voice.