20 June 2017
A thoroughly entertaining, educational and inspirational evening was provided by teams of talented debaters from seven Colchester secondary schools at the St Mary’s Inter-Schools Public Speaking Competition 2017 on 15 June.
St Benedict’s Catholic College was the eventual winner, but it was a close-fought battle between the schools as the audience of parents and teachers was treated to a variety of passionate, informative and eloquent speeches combined with explanations and recitations of some complex literary pieces.
Judges – Principal of Bang & Olufsen Colchester & Norwich Robert Smith, Mrs Callaghan and Mathilda, Year 11 student and winner of the prestigious BPW 2016 Best Speaker – had a difficult task deciding the eventual winners as all the teams showed such skill. 15 Year 10 students hosted the event by meeting and greeting guests, taking photographs and helping with administrative tasks.
Special thanks to Head of English Mrs Mitchell and the Time Keepers Alice, Lizzy, Sasha and Esme and the superb St Mary’s Demonstration Team – Anoushka, Holly, Molly and Phoebe who ensured such a professional start to the evening with flawless presentations. The evening ran smoothly and was enjoyed by all – due to the hard work of all involved and Mrs Hampson’s organisation.