Students from a Bushey school have triumped as North London's brightest teens in a debating competition on political issues.

Sixth form students at Queens' School in Aldenham Road, took part in the Institute of Ideas Debating Matters Competition at the Barbican Cetnre in London.

Pupils Panashe Zharare, Eleanor Glenister, Sophie Gregory and Adeola Alade took part and impressed the judges, which included former Secretary of State for Education and Skills, Baroness Estelle Morris and chief exceutive of universities UK, Nicola Dandridge, with their sharp ideas and broad approach to the topics.

Panashe and Eleanor won the first debate, Artistic Expression Should Never be Censored, arguing for the motion. Sophie and Adeola won the second debate, We Should Introduce Compulsory Voting in the UK, speaking against the motion.

Winning the first two debates took the students to the final of the regional heat on the same day, where Panashe and Sophie argued against the motion for the topic, We Should Intrduce Physician Assisted Dying in the UK.

Queens' Schools was one of six schools who competed in the regional final of the competition on Monday, February 23, after passing the qualifying round.

Panashe from Queens was also named best individual.

Sophie, from the Queens' team, said: "The competition is always tough, we're often asked to argue sides we might disagree with and we spend a lot of time going through both sides of the debate, finding our own views changing as we explore new angles.

"We may have spent the majority of half term in school preparing, but the enjoyment of thinking about serious topical issues and expanding our horizons in a way that the curriculum doesn't always allow us to, was worth it.

"Although we love winning - who doesn't - our enjoyment of the debates comes from genuinely becoming passionate about the subjects we're given, learning to express our ideas and engaging with like-minded students from other schools."

The students from Queens' School will now represent North London at the national final at the British Library in June.