membership
For just £90 per year (£45 for students), your membership to the ASC, a copy of The Speakers Guide (an excellent resource full of helpful tips and preparation methods to help you excel through the assignments like the star speaker you were born to be!), and room hire costs are all covered and included.
Additional copies of The Speakers Guide can be purchased for £10 if required.
We use a programme of ten assignments to ensure that all members have the opportunity to develop to the point where they can deliver a masterpiece speech with confidence.
At each meeting, members have the opportunity to take on different roles - Chair, Speaker, Evaluator, Time Keeper and Topics Chair. Taking on the roles helps to develop your skills as a speaker. In time you will find that this arrangement builds your confidence until you feel relaxed enough to take your turn at the lectern.
meetings
Our standard meeting agenda looks a little something like this:
Each meeting, we listen to three speeches which have been put together by the members in their own time. These are evaluated and suggestions given for further improvement.
After a break we come to the infamous impromptu speaking session… ‘Topics’, where the Topics Chair hands out subjects for speakers to talk on for 2 minutes. These topics speeches are then assessed. Note - this is all voluntary, and in good spirit!!! We never force anybody in to making speeches, you will always work at your own pace. But be warned - it is addictive!
Finally the General Evaluator for the evening assesses the Evaluators, The Chair and Topics Chair.
Interested in joining us for one of our meetings? Get in touch using the below button!
competitions
In 2022, we have had great success. Having won awards at the Midlands’ Regional Heats hosted in Birmingham earlier this year, in March we were entered into the National Finals. At Finals, we then went on to take second place in the impromptu speech and speech evaluation categories, and won first place in the prepared speech competition!
Entering individual and team competitions is encouraged at Leamington Spa Speakers Club because it provides a wonderful opportunity to put your speech writing skills into practise and also speaking to a larger audience.
All competitions are judged by expert judges from within the ASC and the learning opportunities from these events are not to be missed.
As well as providing an opportunity to meet with other budding speakers from other clubs they also include the essential element of all ASC meetings and events - FUN!
In 2019, we have had great success winning the Spouters Stump Solihull Trophy and getting a two members to the semi finals of both the National Speaking and National Evaluation competitions, and for the first time in several years a contestant to the National Finals hosted in Glasgow!
More recently younger members have been popping in. The gavel and the lectern such a far cry from the iPad but they have enjoyed their time with us and we are encouraged by their energy as we host them.