The Rosa Weekes Award

Last Thursday, we welcomed several, local primary schools to Ipswich High School as we launched the Rosa Weekes Prize. The Rosa Weekes Prize is a commemorative, oracy-inspired initiative which serves to engage local Year 6s in a spoken, history competition.

The prize is named in celebration of Rosa Weekes, who worked at Ipswich High School from 1962 for 22 years. She arrived from Nevis, in the Caribbean. Rosa, both personally and professionally, personified many of the values and ideals that we continue to cherish. Her contribution to the lives of the many young people who passed through our school corridors was, in so many ways, immeasurable. The competition’s theme this year (i.e. Resilience) was chosen as a celebration of the resilience Rosa had shown throughout her life. Entrants into the prize had to prepare an argument for why their chosen person also personified resilience in their life, respectively.

Ipswich High School entered two teams, and they were pitched against teams from other local primary schools. Clifford Road Primary in Ipswich was adjudged to have won the prize with their speech on Rosa Parks – other entrants included arguments for the resilience shown by individuals like Walter Tull, Audrey Hepburn and Emmeline Pankhurst amongst others. Every entrant from every team can be immensely pleased by their involvement. And, a special thanks to Max Thomas, the Ipswich Windrush Society’s Founder – for his support throughout the event and to Mrs Leacock and Mrs Phillips – two community elders who both knew Rosa personally – and who kindly volunteered their time to adjudicate the very first Rosa Weekes Prize. Our sincerest thanks to you all.