Jack Petchey Competition Finalists

This year's Jack Petchey Speak Out Challenge final was held earlier, starring our very own Year 10s and their amazing speech. It was an incredibly exciting final to witness, with so many different and unique ideas that the Year 10s expertly crafted into wonderful speeches. We asked Ms Wilson, Bolingbroke's representative for the Jack Petchey Award, about the process of training the Jack Petchey students. She said, "Originally, the speeches were created in the workshop in January 2022, and since then, they have been honed and perfected through 1:1 sessions with myself and other Jack Petchey finalists."

Ms Wilson also offered a big shoutout to Haja, our new Head Girl, a past Jack Petchey finalist, who went to the meetings to help students perfect their speeches. It was a process to get the speeches up to scratch. We asked Milla and Amber, the students chosen for the final, about their personal experiences with developing their speeches. Milla said, "The process was made easy so that you could build your speech up over time, and I received lots of feedback from everyone involved, and they helped tackle my weaknesses." Amber told us, "Finding an initial idea of my speech was quite hard since there were many different subjects she could choose. However, Having Ms Wilson and Haja, who both had key roles in helping me develop my speech, allowed me to become confident."

We then travelled to Chestnut Grove Academy with many other schools present for the final. I was a previous participant in the challenge and was honoured to be asked to judge on the panel. Judging the competition was honestly a blessing. It was a very exciting experience to watch so many speeches with different viewpoints and arguments. Amber said, "The atmosphere at the final was welcoming, and everyone was very supportive, with Bolingbroke's fans shouting and whooping the loudest." The different speeches covered many engaging and personal topics, ranging from climate change and racism to football and music. Bolingbroke students spoke about climate change and sexism in sports. Amber performed a speech titled: "I Don't Care" and talked about the media's presentation of climate change, recounting that she felt very fearful performing. She said, "By the end, I had an overwhelming sense of pride and achievement that despite a few slip-ups and loss of words, I was very proud of myself." Milla performed a speech titled: "Am I Girly Enough For You?" where she discussed her experience with sexism in sport and its impact. Brilliantly, she won third place; congratulations, Milla! She said, "I felt surprised but proud of myself and honestly felt like it should have been anyone but me." Both of the speeches were very informative and creatively presented.

Overall, for everyone involved, the Jack Petchey Speak Out Challenge is a joyous and supportive atmosphere that continually inspires the young people of England. In fact, once you reach Year 10, anyone in Bolingbroke can participate! So here are some tips from the experts themselves about approaching the Jack Petchey challenge. Ms Wilson said, "Be proud and passionate about your view and be open to others' views." Amber said, "Do not let any fear about public speaking stop you from just trying it." Our third place winner, Milla, advised, "Believe in your speech and even if you don't feel confident, pretend that you are and know that everyone feels exactly the same.'"

Finally, I would say that nothing is more exciting and invigorating than being able to spread a message YOU care about. Savour every second and work your hardest! Once again, congratulations to Milla!

I hope that students feel inspired to speak out and participate in the Jack Petchey Speak Out Challenge, and as Ms Wilson said: "One day we will win!'