Debating Success at Nottingham Schools 2022
It was another excellent day for the RGS Worcester debaters at Nottingham University Schools Debating Competition on Saturday, with four teams in the top eight across the whole competition.
This was our first in-person competition since the Pandemic, meaning a 7.00am start and a 10.00pm return. However, it was also fantastic to be able to debate against opponents actually in the room with us!
James Preece and Elizabeth McCabe won all four of their debates and so, as they were then in 1st place in the competition, reached the Gold Final for teams placed 1st to 4th. Here, they were joined fellow RGS pupils Matt Powell and Harvey Boyle (a novice team but 3rd overall!) as well as a team from Solihull School and one from RGS Newcastle. While we were unable to win the Final, it was a hard-fought debate over a motion to ban under 18s from being able to buy ‘loot boxes’ on computer games with real-world money.
The Silver Final is for teams placed 5th to 8th in the competition. Two more RGS teams reached this final – James Parkinson and Kathryn Shaw who went on to win the Silver Final, and George Oates and Lucas Heyburn, with this pair also in their first competition.
This means that, in the Nottingham Schools Debating competition, RGS Worcester topped the table, had four of the top eight (of 36 teams), and also won the Silver Final. This was another superb day, setting us up well for a busy first week back after Half term with debaters in action in the English Speaking Union Regional Final as well as the regional rounds for Oxford and Cambridge schools. Good luck!
Miss Jane Waller
Head of History & Politics, Head of Debating