An exciting semi-final of the Inter-House Debating Competition...

This house believes that censorship can be justified in the name of national security.

New House vs Arion House
The semi-final of the Inter-House Debating Competition saw New House and Arion House meet, with New House proposing the motion of ‘This house believes that censorship can be justified in the name of national security’. Both teams had prepared thoroughly, anticipating each other’s arguments, and ensuring that they had suitable information to launch an effective rebuttal. Arion had the slightly harder task of opposing censorship for national security issues, but they had prepared well and delivered a strong argument. Whilst there was little to separate the teams on content, New House used their experience to effectively utilise the Points of Information. In terms of style, James and Seb of New House put forward their points with confidence, delivering their argument with a captivating tone and pace. The result was a win for New House and they progress to the final. All pupils involved deserve huge credit for making this a very enjoyable and interesting debate.

Dan Cupit - Deputy Head, Academic

Lyon House vs Priory House
In a closely fought semi-final of the Inter-House Debating Competition, Lyon House ended up just pipping Priory House to the post. Both Houses had prepared and researched well, setting out clear motions which allowed them to develop ideas with confidence and clarity. The highlights were Joe’s opposition to the motion which was completely unscripted and it was evident that the topic of censorship was one that both Houses felt passionately about. Ellie’s rebuttal at the end of the debate was also delivered brilliantly which focused closely on the specifics of the motion and effectively answered questions from the floor to further support their arguments. Ultimately it was Lyon House’s style that ensured they won the debate by having the confidence to put down the script and to go for it! Well done to everyone involved.

Dr Emily Corrigan - Deputy Head, Teaching & Learning

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