On 28th February 2026, Young Speakers Scotland held the Finals Day of our Schools’ Mace Debating Competition at Stewart’s Melville College in Edinburgh. Sixteen teams from across Scotland gathered for three exciting knockout rounds, culminating in a Grand Final. We also held a Junior Final for the second time.
After an outstanding day of debating, Broxburn Academy were crowned Mace Champions, with the composite team of Dingwall High School and Hyndland Secondary School named runners-up. In the Junior Final, the composite team of Stewart’s Melville College and The Mary Erskine School claimed victory, with Gryffe High School as runners-up.
Broxburn Academy, winners of the 2025/2026 Schools’ Mace.
Teams qualified for this Finals Day after competing in a series of competitive preliminary rounds held across the country. This year’s Finals Day was by far the most geographically diverse in recent years, with schools travelling from the Highlands, Aberdeenshire, the Central Belt and beyond. We were especially pleased to see ten schools from our Speak Up Scotland programme qualify for this prestigious event and the high number of state schools represented across the board.
The sixteen teams competing were: Broxburn Academy, Douglas Academy, Dingwall High School/Hyndland Secondary School (composite), Grantown Grammar School, Stewart’s Melville College, Aberdeen Grammar School, Thurso High School, Dollar Academy, Invergordon Academy, Banchory Academy, Marr College, Woodfarm High School and Nairn Academy. Of these, Broxburn Academy, Douglas Academy, Dingwall High School/Hyndland Secondary School and Grantown Grammar School advanced through the quarter-finals and semi-finals to contest a thrilling Grand Final.
The Junior Final featured teams from Aberdeen Grammar School, Gryffe High School, Stewart’s Melville College/The Mary Erskine School (composite) and Nairn Academy. Now in its second year, the Junior Final once again showcased the depth of emerging debating talent across Scotland. After a wonderful debate, the Stewart’s Melville College/The Mary Erskine School composite team were declared winners, with Gryffe High School as runners-up.
Stewart’s Melville College/The Mary Erskine School, winners of the 2025/2026 Junior Schools’ Mace.
The motions were as follows:
- Quarter-Final: “This house believes that central banks should be independent from governments.”
- Semi-Final and Junior Final: “This house regrets the rise of reboot culture.”
- Grand Final: “This house prefers adversarial legal systems to inquisitorial legal systems.”
Throughout the day, teams received detailed feedback from judges, supporting their continued development as speakers. We were delighted that the Grand Final was chaired by Heather Cook, a former competitor at the Schools’ Mace who is now studying at the University of Glasgow. It was particularly special to see a former participant return to support the competition in this way. Thank you very much to all the judges and volunteers who helped make the competition possible.
The Schools’ Mace was the first competition I entered. The feedback I received help me grow as a debater and as a person. Returning to judge the Grand Final was a full circle moment! Well done to all the debaters – we had our work cut out for us choosing a winner.
Heather Cook, chair of the Grand Final.
Well done to all the teams that took part and thank you to the teachers who support debating around Scotland. This year’s Finals Day was a wonderful culmination of what has been a wonderful year of debating.