Duke of Edinburgh Award
The Duke of Edinburgh Award was founded in 1956 by HRH Prince Philip. It is a programme which helps develop a variety of skills in its participants such as communication, commitment, leadership and teamwork.
Achieving any level of the Duke of Edinburgh award can also give you an edge over other applicants when you apply for further education or a job. In addition to your qualifications, universities and employers look for evidence that you have developed ‘soft skills’ through extra-curricular activities, such as communication, commitment, leadership and teamwork. Doing your DofE award is a great way to demonstrate and evidence these skills in practice.
The Duke of Edinburgh Award has been offered at Blessed Edward Oldcorne Catholic College for over twenty years and is offered at bronze and silver level. It is available to any student who wants to participate and can be adapted by each person to suit their preferences and needs.
The DofE comprises of 4 sections:
Once the skill, physical and volunteering sections have been completed, students are then invited to participate in the expedition section of the award.
Bronze
Silver
Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award
The Bronze Award is offered to all students in Year 9, and we currently have 70 students participating. Due to the pandemic, students in Year 10 are also doing their bronze award this year, of which we have 63 students participating.
Students undertake their physical, skill and volunteering for three months and then do a further three months in one of them.
Each young person chooses what activities they want to do for each section although guidance is given, and we are sometimes able to provide opportunities for students to undertake a section. Recently we have placed students in volunteering placements with the Swan Food Project and St Richard’s Hospice.
Due to the pandemic and the introduction of the Certificate of Achievement, students focus on the three sections (volunteering, skills and physical) first and then opt into the expedition if they want to and if the pandemic allows.
Once students have completed all three sections and commit to doing their expedition, they work in groups of a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 7 to route plan their route for the expedition. We also hold various training sessions such as how to map read, take a bearing, cook on a Trangia safely and follow countryside code so students are safe when they are remotely supervised during the expedition.
For the Bronze Expedition, students walk for two days carrying everything they need and then camp for one night. We hold a bronze training session before the expedition to ensure that students are well-prepared.
Silver Duke of Edinburgh Award – for academic year 2024-2025
Next year the silver award will be offered to all students who completed their bronze award in Year 9 and then if we have capacity, we will offer it to anyone else in Year 10 who would like to participate.
Students undertake their volunteering for six months; they also choose to do either their physical or skill for six months. The remaining section is then undertaken for three months.
2024 Dates:
Year 9 Bronze Training Sessions
- Tuesday 23rd April 3.30- 5pm
- Tuesday 14th May 3.30- 5pm
- Tuesday 4th June 3.30- 5pm
Year 9 Bronze Expeditions
- Bronze Expedition 1 – 14th – 17th June
- Bronze Expedition 2 – 21st – 24th June
- Bronze Expedition 3 – 23rd – 24th June
Year 10 Silver Expeditions
- Silver Practice Expedition – 21st-23rd June
- Silver Qualifying Expedition – 5th-7th July