Debate club

The BD Debate Team is a flagship oracy and leadership group at Blessed Dominic, empowering pupils from Year 4 to Year 6 to speak confidently, think critically and engage respectfully with complex ideas. Rooted in our Catholic mission and inspired by Catholic Social Teaching, our debaters learn to use their voices for truth, justice and the common good — living out the call:

“Let your speech always be gracious.” (Colossians 4:6)

Oracy is at the heart of everything we do. Pupils practise high‑quality speaking and listening skills every week, debating new motions every Friday morning. They learn to build arguments, challenge ideas thoughtfully, use evidence, and communicate with clarity, kindness and courage.

BD debaters have taken part in several major competitions, including:

• Cicero Cup — a prestigious borough‑wide competition where pupils showcased exceptional oracy, teamwork and persuasive speaking.
• BD vs St Vincent’s Debate — arguing the motion “This house believes Air Pollution Should Be Treated as a National Crisis”, judged by St James High School Geography pupils, who praised BD’s evidence‑based arguments, rebuttal strength and confident delivery.
• Barnet Debate Challenge — where BD beat three other schools to secure a place in the final round, demonstrating outstanding collaboration, structure and oracy excellence.

The Debate Team also leads whole‑school oracy initiatives. They introduced TED Talks across Blessed Dominic, helping pupils link their speeches to the Catholic Social Teaching action they had taken to make a difference. Debate members ran TED Talk workshops, coaching pupils in structure, clarity, confidence, vocal delivery and purposeful storytelling — ensuring every child had the tools to share their voice powerfully.

Through competitions, weekly debates, leadership workshops and CST‑driven action, the BD Debate Team shows our pupils that their ideas matter, their voices are powerful, and they can influence change in our school, community and beyond.