28 Jan 2026

ESU Public Speaking Competition

The latest round of the ESU Public Speaking Competition took place at Charterhouse School on Wednesday evening, with Churcher’s teams delivering an impressive performance.

A huge congratulations goes to Churcher’s Team A, who progressed to the regional finals and are now one step closer to the national final at Cambridge University. Their winning speech, delivered on the topic “Happiness is a choice”, proved particularly compelling and resonated strongly with the judges.

Churcher’s Team B also performed exceptionally well, giving the judging panel a tough decision and demonstrating a high standard of speaking on the night.

With the regional finals taking place at the end of March, anticipation is already building as the teams prepare for the next stage of the competition.

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27 Jan 2026

Articulation Prize

The annual Articulation Prize invites young people aged 16 to 19 to deliver a 10 minute presentation to a live audience on a work of art, architecture, or an artefact.

On Friday 23 January, the Art Department held Churcher’s College’s internal heat of the competition. Three Sixth Form students delivered inspiring and thought-provoking presentations on their chosen artworks, demonstrating both confidence and depth of research.

Following the event, one student was selected to represent Churcher’s College at the regional heat, which will take place at The John Hansard Gallery in Southampton in February. She will present her research on Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting (La Pittura) by Artemisia Gentileschi.

We wish our selected student the very best of luck as she represents Churcher's in the competition.

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27 Jan 2026

Trading in Commodities

Almost 60 students filled the Lecture Theatre to hear a talk about ‘Trading in Commodities’ from Martin Perry. Martin covered a wide range of topics concerned with commodities, from the origins of trading in commodities to careers in commodities to price discovery (i.e. how commodities reach a market price which allows them to be traded). Martin discussed the four main categories of commodities trading:

• Energy Commodities (crude oil, natural gas, and gasoline)
• Metal Commodities (gold, silver, and platinum)
• Livestock and Meat Commodities (pork bellies, live cattle, and feeder cattle)
• Agricultural Commodities (corn, soybeans, wheat, rice, cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar)

He then focused on wheat and grain as an amplified example, involving some student participation where they were able to negotiate prices in order to attempt some virtual trading, reacting to a number of different and changing scenarios.

Martin has been trading goods including cereals, soybeans, sugar and cocoa, with his career taking him around the world, including roles based in Madrid, Chicago, New York and London; now working for Bartholomews Agri-Food in Chichester.

Martin concluded that the physical commodity industry is unique, varying enormously between different product categories, comprising many diverse career paths. He recommended it as an opportunity to experience foreign cultures and the potential for independent travel. Most importantly, he said, it’s a people industry which not only values reliable service and price, but good long-term working relationships between buyer and seller.

Huge thanks to Martin for visiting us.

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