The winners of the ESU’s Public Speaking Competition 2026 have been announced. Royal Grammar School (RGS), High Wycombe has been named the best team, with Jamie Williams (speaker), Don Herh (chair) and Emad Haroon (questioner) beating 10 other regional finalists to first place at the grand final at Dartmouth House, Mayfair, on Monday, 1 June – the culmination of a contest which has featured over 90 heats and in which over 1,500 young people have taken part. The win marks another successful year for RGS in the competition, following Zeph Adebowale’s Best Chair award at the 2025 grand final.
Other winners were Ademide Adegoke from Altrincham Grammar School for Boys, who took Best Chair, Hamish Clarke from Oundle School (Best Questioner) and Charlotte Hagelthorn from South Wilts Grammar School who, as Best Speaker, will be invited to represent England & Wales at next year’s International Public Speaking Competition.
Among the judges was Susan Acland-Hood, Acting Permanent Secretary at the Department for Education, who praised the exceptional standard of the finalists. ‘I thought there was absolutely brilliant skill and knowledge on show today,’ she said. ‘People were talking really intentionally and thoughtfully about things they knew about, in a way that made great use of learned and developed skills and had a real impact on the audience.’
Acland-Hood also highlighted the unique format of the competition, which allows students to take the role of speaker, chair or questioner. She said: ‘The competition requires the chair and the questioner to listen, to invite contributions and to think about how they create an environment that makes for really effective collective communication and understanding. We need much more of that in the world, not less.’
Speaking after their victory, the winning team reflected on their journey through the competition. Jamie said: ‘When I left that grand final, I genuinely felt like anyone could go and win it because the competition was so tough. I met so many amazing people, teachers, staff and other students through the competition. It was just brilliant.’ Teammate Emad added: ‘The speeches were of such high quality, the questions were amazing and the competition was on a completely different level. It was a great experience overall, and winning at the end made it even more special.’
The prestigious ESU Public Speaking Competition is the largest such contest in England and Wales, with around 360 teams (each comprising a speaker, questioner and a chairperson). The different roles allow students to practise and excel in different skill sets, and the competition’s unique format, which pairs the speaker from one school with the chair and questioner of another, encourages quick thinking and relationship building. Past winners include impressionist and comedian Rory Bremner and broadcaster and author Anita Anand, who chaired this year’s judging panel.
