Schools – Debate Mate

Our after-school debate clubs empower students around the world with the human skills to unleash their full potential.

How it works

Peer Mentors

We hire, assess and train top university students to be inspirational peer mentors. All our mentors are enhanced DBS checked.

Launch Event

The 17-week programme kicks off with a launch event for students and teachers to get inspired and meet their mentors.

Weekly Clubs

Students take part in one-hour after-school sessions, where they develop key skills through games and interactive activities.

Competitions

Students take part in regional competitions, with the top teams progressing to our national finals held at aspirational venues.

Why we exist

The UK has one of the lowest rates of social mobility amongst OECD countries. This means that children growing up in poverty are less likely to achieve in school, to attend university, and to find productive employment as adults.

By the age of seven, children who are eligible for Free School Meals are more than twice as likely as their better-off peers to be behind on expected reading levels. Over 60 percent of these children will fail to achieve five good GCSEs, which significantly increases their chances of becoming unemployed upon leaving school.

We believe that every child deserves equal access to a top education. Debate Mate supports the young people of today to find their voices, so that they can become the leaders of tomorrow.