Year 11 pupils Lydie, Eleanor and Ramya took part in the ESU public speaking competition, the largest competition for schools in England and Wales.

Although the girls only had 15 minutes to prepare with their speaker from another school, it was a great opportunity for the team to discuss not only the speech but also their feelings towards the competition as a whole.

After the team completed their presentation, Eleanor delivered her speech about bias against introverts. Lydie, chairperson, acted as the master of ceremonies for their round. Ramya, questioner, had the job to ask a speaker from another school questions about their speech, which was about the future of the NHS.

Soon after Eleanor’s speech, ESU revealed which teams would be continuing to the next round. The girls were also able to hear feedback from the judges which is beneficial for them to use going forward.

“The ESU public speaking competition was an extremely positive experience which allowed us to gain valuable public speaking experience and knowledge – bring on round 2!”Lydie, Year 11 public speaker