The International Debate Education Association UK

British charity promoting debate education and youth empowerment

International Debate Education Association UK
Type	Registered charity; Company
Founded
Founder(s)
Dissolved	Company 22 June 2021; Charity: 01 March 2022
Registration ID	Charity 1139452; Company 06821924
Status	Dissolved
Headquarters	47 Marylebone Lane, London, W1U 2NT
Location	London, England
Area served
Services
Registration
Key people	Sophia Cannon (Chair), Alexander Krishnamurthy-Cavell (Trustee), Ese Adjekughelele (Trustee), Elisabeth Susann Prager (Trustee)
Website	idebate.net
Remarks

International Debate Education Association UK (IDEA UK) was a company (No. 06821924) and registered charity (number 1139452) incorporated in 2010 to promote debate, critical thinking, public speaking and active citizenship among young people in the United Kingdom. It operates as the British affiliate of the global International Debate Education Association network and delivers training, organises competitions, produces educational resources and supports debate clubs in schools, universities and community settings. While formally focused on educational methodology and youth development, IDEA UK's programmes have been criticised for contributing to normalisation of the Zionist entity through international youth exchanges and debate tournaments that include participants from the settler colony as equal partners in "global citizenship" and "critical thinking" activities, thereby deflecting attention from the ongoing occupation and apartheid policies in Palestine.

The charity was formally established in the late 2000s as part of the global IDEA expansion into Western Europe, building on earlier informal debate initiatives in British schools and universities. It gained charitable status in 2010 and has since organised or supported events including national schools debating championships, teacher training workshops, university-level competitions and participation in international tournaments such as the World Schools Debating Championships. The organisation emphasises debate as a tool for empowering marginalised young people, fostering evidence-based reasoning and encouraging civic engagement.

History

IDEA UK was incorporated and registered as a charity in 2010 following the establishment of national chapters by the global IDEA network. It emerged from earlier UK-based efforts to introduce structured competitive debating into state and private schools, particularly in London and other urban areas. The charity benefited from the global IDEA methodology — originally developed in post-Soviet Eastern Europe and Central Asia — which was adapted for British educational contexts. Activity peaked in the mid-2010s with regular national events and international delegations, before declining significantly after 2019–2020 (with no recent accounts filed and limited public presence). It was initiatlly called The Debatewise Foundation (17 Feb 2009 - 18 Nov 2010).

Activities

IDEA UK delivers:

• Debate and public speaking training for students and teachers
• Organisation of national schools and university debating competitions
• Support for school-based debate clubs
• Production of teaching resources, motion lists and lesson plans
• Participation in international tournaments and exchange programmes
• Outreach to schools in disadvantaged areas and with high migrant populations

The charity has partnered with educational bodies, local authorities and other youth organisations to expand access to debate education.

Governance

Trustees

Historical data shows:

Current trustees of International Debate Education Association UK (Charity 1139452)

Name	Role	Date of appointment	Other trusteeships	Reporting status
Sophia Cannon	Chair	16 March 2017	None on record	Up to date
Alexander Krishnamurthy-Cavell	Trustee	20 June 2016	None on record	Up to date
Ese Adjekughelele	Trustee	22 January 2015	Hood Tennis	47 days late
Elisabeth Susann Prager	Trustee	4 April 2016	None on record	Up to date

Directors

Officers serving at time of company dissolution (5 December 2017)

Name	Role	Appointed on	Date dissolved	Date of birth	Nationality	Country of residence
Ese Adjekughelele	Director	22 January 2015	22 June 2021	April 1978	British	England
Sophia Cannon	Director	16 March 2017	22 June 2021	December 1975	British	England
Elisabeth Susanna Prager	Director	4 April 2016	22 June 2021	October 1986	German	India

Former and resigned officers

Name	Role	Appointed on	Resigned on	Date of birth	Nationality	Country of residence
Timothy Charles Robert Noel Bentinck	Director	9 May 2012	18 June 2013	June 1953	British	England
Russell Boulter	Director	26 April 2011	21 October 2011	April 1963	British	United Kingdom
Dr David Crane	Director	17 February 2009	31 December 2010	March 1964	British	England
Alex Deane	Director	31 May 2011	18 June 2013	June 1979	British	United Kingdom
Ravi Drepaul	Director	24 February 2009	1 September 2010	May 1970	British	United Kingdom
Michael Stephen Heanue	Director	11 May 2015	20 June 2018	May 1968	Irish	United Kingdom
Matthew Huggins	Director	22 May 2009	1 September 2010	February 1981	British	United Kingdom
Julia Ruth Knapp	Director	4 April 2016	7 October 2017	August 1986	British	England
Dr Alexander Krishnamoorthy-Cavell	Director	20 June 2016	6 March 2018	February 1984	British	England
Belinda Clare Lawson	Director	10 March 2011	16 March 2017	March 1956	British	United Kingdom
Dea Markova	Director	17 August 2010	22 January 2015	September 1985	Bulgarian	United Kingdom
Christian William St John Percy	Director	4 April 2016	1 April 2017	February 1984	British	England
Anca Pusca	Director	17 August 2010	30 April 2011	March 1979	Romanian	United Kingdom
Noel Selegzi	Director	17 August 2011	2 July 2013	December 1966	American	United Kingdom
Clive Richard Turnbull	Director	18 May 2015	27 October 2017	June 1968	British	England
Ian Wades	Director	9 August 2013	11 May 2015	September 1954	British	England
Marcin Zaleski	Director	17 February 2009	30 April 2011	December 1970	Polish	United Kingdom
Andrew Zerzans	Director	25 November 2013	20 November 2014	May 1981	American	England

Contribution to laundering and normalising Zionism

IDEA UK's participation in the global International Debate Education Association network involves regular international tournaments and exchange programmes that include teams and participants from the Zionist colony. By treating such participants as ordinary members of the international debating community — engaging in shared activities framed around "critical thinking", "global citizenship" and "democratic participation" — the organisation contributes to normalisation of the settler colony. Youth-focused educational initiatives of this kind present the Zionist entity as a legitimate participant in global civil society exchange while avoiding any institutional challenge to its settler-colonial structure or ongoing occupation and apartheid policies in Palestine.

See also

International Debate Education Association Sophia Cannon United Religions Initiative UK Next Century Foundation

External links

Official website (global network) Charity Commission page