Shropshire Rotarians judged the first Annual Academy Public Speaking Competition at Madeley Academy last night when seven teams of youngsters from three schools competed for the Mercers’ Shield.
Years 7, 8 and 9 students from Madeley and Sandwell Academies as well as Thomas Telford School spoke on a range of subjects including MPs’ expenses (entitled ‘What a Flippin’ Cheek’) and teen problems such as bullying and growing up too soon.
Chairman of the Judges, Linda Peach from Telford Centre Rotary, said: "I take my hat off to all the students for having the courage to stand up and speak at such a young age."
Mr Vic Maher, Head at Madeley, added: "This was an excellent chance for the younger students to gain some valuable experience so that they can participate in local, regional and national contests in future years. I’m delighted that we were able to use our fantastic new buildings at Madeley to host this competition." Madeley Academy Hospitality and Catering students were on hand to provide a buffet and refreshments.
The competition was the brainchild of Thomas Telford School student Annalisa Parrino. Fifteen year old Annalisa from Muxton is a huge fan of public speaking and used all her own persuasive speaking skills to get the idea for this competition off the ground. She even produced a guide to help participants write their speeches.
Event organiser, Mr John Birkett, said: "I’m so glad that Annalisa suggested this competition between our schools and we have been lucky to secure the support of experts from local Rotary Clubs who run long established public speaking events for older students. Telford Centre Rotary Club kindly sponsored trophies for the Best Speaker from each of the participating schools and The Mercers’ Company, one of our major sponsors, provided a bright new trophy "The Mercers’ Shield - for overall winners in this first and what I hope will be a long tradition of events."
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