Posted: Thursday 10 November 2011
Fifth Year group win trip to London in Red Cross competition
The Fifth Year j8 group have been recognised as runners up in the Red Cross Justice and Fairness competition.
The pupils, Alison Eadie, Sarra Levinson, Josh Lewis, Calum McIntosh and Lena McCrae (above) entered the nationwide contest, which is sponsored by the international law firm Allen & Overy, in May. They were one of only seven teams to make it through to the final at the firm's head office in London on 5 October.
The competition asked young people from across the UK to show off their knowledge and experience of humanitarian issues, by submitting presentations based around the themes of justice and fairness.
Facing tough competition the group gave an outstanding 15-minute presentation on the importance of the Millennium Development Goals in reducing injustice and conflict.
The presentation was extremely well received by delegates at the conference and there have been several requests to use it in other areas.
Mairi Allan, Head of Schools and Community Education at the British Red Cross was equally impressed saying that:
“All the presentations were fantastic but Hutchesons’ Grammar really stood out because they managed to take on a complicated issue and make it really accessible.”
Teacher Mr Clarke commented that the school is very proud of what the group have achieved, saying:
"They have not only given up a lot of their time to raise awareness and take action on a very important issue but they have also been very innovative in the methods they have used. Their preparation beforehand was most thorough and their presentation on the day was outstanding.”
The group are now looking forward to their prize, which is a flight to London, followed by a day sightseeing and a theatre visit. On the second day of the trip they will have a guided tour of the Foreign Office where they will be given the opportunity to deliver their presentation once more.