Announcing the Debating Matters Public Policy Championships!

Debating Matters is delighted to announce its next three championship events. As ever, these championships will see schools from around the country take on their peers in a series of debates overseen by panels of eminent judges. 

At the heart of the championships, as always, will be Debating Matters unique brand of ‘substance over style’ debating, the unparalleled interaction between judges and debaters, plenty of audience involvement, and a commitment to taking ideas seriously. 

Debating Matters has always prided itself on encouraging young people to dig into the complex debates at the heart of contemporary discussions. That’s why we’re delighted that these next three championship events will all have a specific focus on public policy issues, from whether the foreign aid budget should be cut to whether social media sites should clamp down on disinformation, whether controversial statues should be removed or whether we need a universal basic income in the aftermath of the pandemic. 

“We’re thrilled to be working on this unique set of championships thanks to the support of PERT. Seeing young people explore ideas and develop their arguments is one of the great privileges of Debating Matters. As ever, we can’t wait to bring Debating Matters’ brand of tough, respectful and intellectually adventurous discussion to schools right across the country.”
Geoff Kidder, chief executive, boi charity

These issues and more will feature in a new series of topic guides, written specifically with a public policy focus which will have young people debating some of the key contemporary issues of the day. 

In addition to arguing their side of the motion, competitors will have the opportunity to record their own opinions on the topics under discussion, and discuss how their opinions of the issues changed as they went through the process of preparing for the debate. Debating Matters will be giving the competitors the chance to have their say and get involved in a project which seeks to understand how young people think about contemporary issues. 

Debating Matters is delighted that this series of Public Policy Championships is supported by the Politics and Economics Research Trust (PERT). 

If you are a teacher, student or potential judge who wants to get involved, please email Mo Lovatt at mo@theboi.co.uk

For press or other public enquiries, email Jacob Reynolds at jacob@theboi.co.uk