The Scottish National Team

Part of our work involves identifying and training talented debaters who will go on to represent Scotland at the World Championships. Scotland has historically performed very well at this prestigious competition and we are keen to see this continue into the future. We believe that, for the team to operate at its best, it should represent young people from all corners of Scotland.

For more information on these events, please contact scottishdebatingteam@gmail.com.

Details on Applications to the 2025-2026 National Team
We are excited to invite your pupils to apply for the Scottish Schools Debating Squads 2025/26 – a unique opportunity to develop critical thinking and communication skills amongst a community of like-minded peers, with the possibility of representing Scotland on the world stage.

Each year, Scottish Schools Debating selects pupils from across the country to take part in free expert-led coaching and engaging practice sessions. Our programme is designed to challenge students at every level – from those just beginning their debating journey to experienced competitors aiming for national and international success. We offer two streams:

  • Training Squad – Our main pathway to the National Team. 24 pupils train online each week and compete for a place on the five-person team representing Scotland at the World Schools Debating Championship (WSDC) in Kenya in July 2026.
  • Junior Squad – For pupils in S1-S4, focusing on building skills in a supportive, lower-pressure environment through two training days a term (at least one in-person in Edinburgh).
We welcome applications from any pupil at a Scottish school, regardless of prior experience. In fact, several of our most successful debaters started with no debating background, including members of our 2024 World Champion team.

We are looking for pupils who are curious, willing to learn, able to think critically, and hard working.

Applications close at 1pm on Sunday 7th September. Pupils should complete Team Scotland Application Form 2025-26 and return it to scottishdebatingteam@gmail.com.

If you are aware of pupils at your school who might be interested in taking up this opportunity, or a teacher who would be best placed to find these pupils, we would be grateful if you could share the attached application form with them. We would also encourage you to share with teachers at other schools to ensure we do not miss any pupil who would be interested.

There will be no cost to trialists’ schools and no time requirements from teachers. Scottish Schools Debating will cover the costs of attending WSDC for those selected to the National Team.