MONMOUTH’S three main schools recently competed in the local round of the Youth Speaks competition.

This event is organised by Monmouth Rotary Club and is part of a UK wide public speaking competition for young people sponsored by Rotary International of Great Britain and Ireland.

The competition is designed to give youngsters the skill, knowledge and confidence to speak publicly. As Roger Finn, President of Monmouth Rotary Club told the contestants: “Don’t ever make the mistake of thinking that the ability to speak publically isn’t important; it can be the key difference between success and failure in many aspects of life”.

Perhaps taking these words to heart, the youngsters were congratulated on their impressive performances. The spokesperson for the adjudicating panel, Jim Newcomb, commented on the difficulty of separating the teams and picking winners.

In the intermediate category Haberdashers’ Monmouth School for Girls came out on top with their topic ’Beware the Simple Story: The Danger of Stereotyping’. The senior competition was won by Monmouth Comprehensive School speaking on the subject ’Equality in Education’. These two teams now go on to the District Final at Maisemore on Saturday 4th February.

A spokesperson from Monmouth Rotary Club said: "Monmouth Rotary Club wishes to thank the staff and students from Haberdashers’ Monmouth School for Girls, Monmouth Comprehensive School and Monmouth School for their inspiration and effort. Also grateful thanks go to the town mayor, Chris Munslow, for kindly presenting the prizes."