Pupils from The Royal High School, Edinburgh; Shawlands Academy, Glasgow; and St Peter the Apostle, Clydebank, will battle it out for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) national schools public speaking competition.

The final will take place on Wednesday, June 7, in Parliament House, Edinburgh.

The topic which the pupils will have to master is: “The most pressing equality issue in Scotland today is…………..; to address it I would……..”

In closely-fought semi-finals, The Royal High School, Edinburgh, defeated Perth Academy, Shawlands Academy overcame Cumbernauld Academy while St Peter the Apostle came out on top against Dornoch Academy.

The competition started in Glasgow in 2012 and quickly became popular with pupils and teachers. It represents part of the work done by Scotland’s prosecution service to improve understanding of equality and diversity issues.

It is also part of the service’s strategy to reach out to communities and young people in Scotland and engage them in discussion and debate on important issues related to the work of COPFS.

This year’s competition has involved 178 pupils from 57 schools across Scotland.