Headingley Festival of Ideas Years 10&11 Debating Competition 2018 Final

Wednesday 21 March 2018 – Leeds Salon hosts the fifth Headingley Festival of Ideas schools debating competition for years 10&11 pupils.

The Final is made up of the three north Leeds qualifying round winners – Cardinal Heenan Catholic HighAllerton High and Lawnswood School – and the winners of the Tetley 2018 competition for south and central Leeds schools – Woodkirk Academy.

Event Sponsors: Switalskis Solicitors.
Prize Sponsors: Human Factor and Safety Group at the University of Leeds’ Institute for Transport Studies and the EU Horizon 2020 project EMPOWER, and Thackray Medical Museum.


15:40 – DEBATE 1“Humanity should fear advances in artificial intelligence”

FOR: Lawnswood School
AGAINST: Cardinal Heenan Catholic High

JUDGES
Paul Butterworth, NHS Digital
Dan Clayton, The Leeds Salon
Nikos Sotirakopoulos, York St John University


16:45 – DEBATE 2 – “Social media sites should filter out fake news stories”

FOR: Allerton High School
AGAINST: Woodkirk Academy

JUDGES
Julie Firmstone, University of Leeds
Paul Butterworth, NHS Digital
Nikos Sotirakopoulas, York St John University


17:45 – Break


18:00 – FINAL“We should build HS2”

FOR: Cardinal Heenan Catholic High
AGAINST: Allerton High School

JUDGES
Lindsey Rhodes, Switalskis Solicitors
Kate Pangbourne, University of Leeds
Dan Clayton, The Leeds Salon


19:15-19:30 – Judge’s Deliberations & Results


WINNING SCHOOL: Allerton High School – who all received copies of the Oxford Very Short Introduction to Philosophy and £10 Vue Cinema vouchers.

RUNNERS-UP: Cardinal Heenan Catholic High – who all received a copy of the Oxford Short Introduction to Philosophy.

BEST INDIVIDUAL PRIZE:  Lizzie Snow, Allerton High – who receieved a copy of the Oxford Very Short Introduction to the Philosophy of Science and family ticket to the Thackray Medical Museum.

HIGHLY COMMENDED PRIZE: Ruby Joseph, Cardinal Heenan – who receives a copy of the Oxford Very Short Introduction to the Philosophy of Science and a £10 Vue cinema voucher.

COMMENDED INDIVIDUAL PRIZE: Sam Brassil, Allerton High – who received a copy of the Oxford Very Short Introduction to the Philosophy of Science.