Helping Every Child to Find Their Voice

Our charity helps your schoolbuild everyone’s debate, oracy & leadership skills

Supporting British Values, Pupil Voice, School Councils and PSHE

Loved by 500+ Schools

Involve every pupil through meaningful debates and by creating real change. Everything’s ready for you. 2,000 debates at a click, and hand over to your pupils to run. Build a stronger school community and meet Ofsted requirements easily.

Used by 🎓

  • From Year 1, get all your pupils involved in engaging, structured debates that are easy to run.

  • Empower older students to lead debates, fostering critical thinking and discussion skills. Giving them real tools to lead change.

  • Tailored debates to engage all students, no matter their background or educational needs.

  • Building voices across groups of schools has never been more important. Join our MAT programme to do this with ease

  • Loved by International Schools across the world, we help you bring great debates to your young people, wherever you are.

The most powerful tool you have is your voice

Learning to use it takes time, support and belief. But at a time of deep division in society, too few young people get this opportunity. We help schools to involve every voice. Combined with the opportunity to create genuine change. Let’s build a positive and inclusive democratic future together.

How does Smart School Councils work?

Whether you’re a small primary school or a large Multi-Academy Trust, our flexible programme fits easily into your schedule to meet the unique needs of your students.

Go at your own pace, integrate the programme into your schedule as it suits you.

STEP 1: VOICE

It all starts with our voices. Using our incredible Class Meeting Tool, pupils in each class are guided through running a quick debate on a question you pick.

Choose from 2,000+ debates and watch those voices grow stronger.

  • Just show up and start. Once you've set up your classes, there's no need to plan—everything’s ready for you.

  • Explore a world of ideas with 2,000 debates, all just a click away.

    Plus, 200 of these debates come with a Big Debate Club video to take engagement to the next level.

  • Pupils lead the meetings!

    Plus there's five new debates every week. One with a complete Debate Pack, cheat sheet and lesson plan.

STEP 3: ACTION

If you want to take it further, this is where debates turn into real-world impact. Pupils identify issues and create pieces of change.

For our schools who choose to go to this level, it’s not just about talking anymore; it’s about doing—empowering students to create meaningful change.

  • Tailor the debates to address specific issues within your school, ensuring that discussions are directly relevant to your school community's needs

  • Give students the tools and confidence to turn their ideas into actionable steps, fostering a sense of ownership and responsibility.

  • Encourage pupils to not only identify problems but also to be the driving force behind meaningful solutions, strengthening the school’s community and values.

STEP 2: LEADERS

If you’re ready, it’s time for your pupils to lead. Give a group of pupils like your existing school council an active role in choosing questions.

This stage isn’t just about talking—it’s about empowering pupils to lead.

  • Empower a small group of students to choose your school's debate questions, making each debate more engaging and tailored to their interests.

  • Foster a culture of confident expression and active participation, helping every pupil develop a democratic voice in your school community.

  • Simplify your workload as students take the lead, allowing you to focus more on guidance.

Building Everyday Democracy.

  • 2,000 Debate Topics with a Click

    Instantly access 2,000 ready-to-go debates, making every classroom conversation count.

  • 5 New Debates Every Week

    With a new Debate Pack every single week featuring a video, cheat sheet, fact sheet and lesson plans. Easy!

  • Create Custom School Debates ⭐️

    Pick your own questions dedicated to your school. Fully flexible to fit your school’s unique needs.

  • Friendly, No-Faff Support from Teachers

    Book a Getting Started Session or CPD. We're teachers who understand the classroom and just a call or email away.

  • Zero Prep for Class Teachers

    Get each class talking right away—no prep, paper or passwords. Just click and hand over to the pupils.

  • British Values Made Simple

    Every pupil, engaging in democratic discussions regularly, tackling the issues of modern Britain in a safe, simple way.

  • One Click Reporting for Ofsted

    Generate PDFs with your school’s engagement data in seconds—ready to share with a single click

  • Built for Teachers. Not Tech Gurus

    Runs on standard school tech, no devices required. Set up in minutes. PS: You can't break it 🤣

What do schools say?

Don't just take our word for it. The pupils and staff in our amazing member schools are the real stars. We love to shine a spotlight on them.

Alastair Campbell, Writer and Communications Expert

‘Smart School Councils is great. Anybody who sees it in action can only be inspired’

Recent news

Find out what’s happening with our charity's amazing membership of schools. Read all posts here.

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