Your Speak Out Challenge
Tens of thousands of students participate in this programme each year. Here’s some advice that previous participants wanted to share with you.
“Join in, don’t be scared and speak your mind!”
“Be brave, breathe and be yourself.”
Our vision at Speakers Trust is for every young person to be able to speak and be heard. This programme has been designed for you and your peers to support you share views, learn from one another and build communication skills for school, home and beyond with one of our expert trainers.
This programme is funded and delivered in partnership with the Jack Petchey Foundation who encourage young people to believe in themselves. Sir Jack’s message to every student taking part is “if you think you can, you can.”
This page provides you with resources to help further your speaking skills, shape your message and get inspired.
YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS WORKSHOP
On the day of your workshop, you will learn how to speak in public and communicate easily, with confidence and enjoyment. The day is great fun and very interactive, which means you will be practising the skills you are learning throughout the day.
You will have the chance to speak several times, learning how to think quickly and finding out how to prepare a speech and deliver it. Trust us, it is much easier than you think!
During the workshop you will be asked to give a short speech about yourself, only a minute in length. You will also have an opportunity to give another speech on a subject that you feel really strongly about. You can talk about anything you want. So why not start to think about things that motivate you, maybe something you want to change or an issue that is important to you. It is your choice, you can talk about anything YOU want.
Here are some ideas of what others have talked about
Have a look at our Workshop Overview.
PREPARING FOR YOUR WORKSHOP
We understand that you may feel excited or nervous before attending your public speaking workshop. That’s why we’ve created this quick, easy, interactive resource which will help you prepare for the day! It’ll be the best 10 minutes you can spend to get ready (and get a headstart!) for the session.
Check out the Pre-Workshop resource here.
YOUR ASSEMBLY FINAL
Each school participating in the programme will hold a school Assembly Final to select the school representative for the Regional Final. If you have been selected to speak at your school assembly, this opportunity will help you practise your speech and share your skills and stories to inspire your peers and teachers.
This Assembly Final Student Information Sheet contains our preparation notes and tips to help you deliver your speech to the best of your ability. These notes are the same that you will have received at the end of your workshop. Take a look at our communicating confidently page to help you remember the top tips.
YOUR REGIONAL FINAL
If your school has selected you to be the school representative at your Regional Final make sure the date of the event is in your diary and that you have invited your friends, family and carers to support you. This Regional Final Student Information Sheet will help you prepare for the event. It’s a professionally run event and you will be in the top 4% of students in London and Essex. You will be invited to an online workshop one week before the event and there will be a live student workshop before the event so be sure to be there for 4pm.
Please note, at this stage of the competition, your speech will be judged on the positive impact it has on the audience. This doesn’t mean you can’t take on challenging subjects, but your audience wants to hear your solutions.
We encourage you to speak about the same subject you spoke on in your workshop as it has shown to have winning qualities. Remember to speak to your teacher in advance as both you and your parent/guardian will need to complete the consent form in advance of the event as there will be press, media, photography to celebrate your achievements and help you amplify your message. Our online guidance is available here and further detail will be on the consent form you will sign before the event.
YOUR SEMI FINAL
A virtual shortlisting will take place in May to review the winning speeches from all 37 Regional Finals. 15 speakers will be selected using the programme standard judging criteria – the communication triangle (outlined on the first page of your workbook).
YOUR GRAND FINAL
15 Grand Finalists will speak out on a stage in London’s West End to share their stories with an audience of over 1,000 people in this flagship event. You can watch this year’s winning speech here.
