Rosie with judges

Rosie wins The Great Debate

Rosie Russell, an Upper Sixth pupil, won the London heat of The Great Debate organised by the Historical Association with her speech that addressed the question “Why does your local hero matter?” Rosie now progresses to the finals of this competition which are held at Clare College, Cambridge and the hero she chose was Marie Stopes, who lived in Leatherhead for a brief time.

Rosie said “Marie Stopes had a strong passion for what she believed in and was fighting for women’s rights at a time when women had no real say which just highlighted how brave and courageous she was”

The judges commented that the speech “fused interesting contextual detail with a strong argument for her hero” and were full of praise for all speakers saying the standard of the London heat was better than the overall final last year.