Duke of Edinburgh

Latest News:
Survival Skills Course

27th-28th April

We are inviting all of our DofE students both old and new and any level to join in this opportunity to spend 24 hours learning some survival skills and having fun in the woods.
If you are keen to develop your skills before your expeditions, or you’ve already done yours but want to get back ‘out there’, this could be for you. For more information contact Miss Forest, and click on the Bushcraft Company link http://www.thebushcraftcompany.com/

BRONZE	SILVER
K Groups, year 10 L Groups, year 11 M Groups, Enrichment (finish July)	Y1S (Year 1) Y2S (Year 2)

DofE News: March 2012

The pace is really picking up this month. Nearly a hundred new Bronze level participants undertook their Training Day walk on St. Patrick’s Day; although a few groups took the occasional detour, everyone got safely back to college in the end. Although the day started rainy it cleared up as soon as the first booted foot passed through the door and it stayed fine for the rest of the day. Everyone came back tired but pleased, all with their different stories of the day.

We have just awarded some more certificates to those students from last year who have completed their Awards (see pictures) and there are still more in the pipeline, so we aim to have one more presentation before the end of the academic year. Well done to all of you.

As we approach the Easter break, route planning for the first ‘wave’ of expeditions is almost complete. Four groups will be undertaking Silver expeditions in Derbyshire near the end of April, and sixteen more groups will be going out on their Practice Bronze expeditions in Leicestershire during May. If you are around the Charnwood area, look out for groups of young people in multiples of seven bearing backpacks; you’ll probably hear them before you see them!

Many of our new intake have taken up the offer of a free DofE T-shirt, and very smart they look too. As the longer days and warmer weather get closer, the excitement is building. We can’t wait to get out there!

DofE News: January 2012

Things are well underway now with almost all of our new Bronze and Silver intake enrolled. There was a very good attendance to the Enrolment Evening on the 11th, with many people signing up to assist a range of voluntary organisations such as the Air Ambulance and Voluntary Action Leicestershire. Our in-house charities also recruited plenty of support with Changing Faces, the Yellow Teapot Club and some House charities all getting lots of interest. Many students have signed up for the course to gain a first aid qualification at our special ‘DofE rate’ and we are inviting the people from Bushcraft back soon as many students are keen to develop their outdoor survival skills.

Our new participants are now looking ahead to their expeditions, so there is lots of work to do getting familiar with maps and navigation and learning to use a compass. Students will also be considering what activities they are going to do for their Skills, Physical Recreation and Volunteering sections and contacting potential assessors.

We have changed the dates of our Silver expeditions, so that the Practice groups will now go out in July and the Qualifying groups will go out in April. This means that our students who are new to Silver and the more rigorous demands of their expeditions (compared to Bronze) will be able to go out in – hopefully – better weather.

And finally, there are still lots of students who are close to completing their Awards from last year who need to finish off their sections and get their books in. We are aiming to present the next set of Award certificates in March so, get those books in!

DofE News: December 2011

As the year draws to a close, so too does a cycle of the DofE year as the first group of Bronze students receive their Award certificates (see pictures). These were presented by the College Principal who paid tribute to the hard work and commitment of the students, some of whom are now moving on to the Silver level. There are still a lot of students who are completing their sections and gathering their evidence in preparation for the next Award presentation in the spring.

The new Silver groups have had their first look at the maps for their expeditions next April, and getting a feel for the new challenges that lie ahead. They will be exploring the White Peaks of Derbyshire and, this being England, know they will need to be ready for whatever the weather may throw at them. We have a new intake of staff looking after these groups, several of whom have themselves done Gold DofE and who are relishing the prospect of guiding the students on their own DofE journeys.

The students in Years 10 and 11 will be getting their letters on the 16th of December to confirm if we can offer them places at the Bronze level. The degree of interest has been considerable, but over 80 students will be getting good news and can begin planning their activities. Santa may need to stock up on walking boots and sleeping bags! New Bronze participants (and all the currently enrolled students) will be invited to the Enrolment Evening on 11th January (7-9pm) where they can shop for expedition kit, sign up for a First Aid Course, and speak to a range of representatives from voluntary organisations with a view to getting their Volunteering sections underway from Day One.

Happy Christmas – and let’s hope Rudolph’s ‘navigational nose’ guides Santa successfully on his Big Expedition!

DofE News: November 2011

It’s a busy time this month. All the students who are completing their Awards this year are rushing to get their evidence signed off and submitted in anticipation of getting their hard-earned certificates and badges in time for Christmas. Just over 130 students have undertaken their Qualifying expeditions this season, mostly Bronze but a handful of Silvers. Some of the Bronze level students are already thinking about their Silver Awards.

On the other hand, it’s a tense time for the Year 10 and Year 11 students who are applying for the coveted places on the Bronze programme starting in January. As in previous years, there are many more students applying than we are able to accommodate, despite increasing the number of places this year. Just over 150 students have expressed interest in doing their Bronze Award. The 16th December is ‘DofE’ day, when letters will be sent out to all applicants via their form tutors to confirm if we can offer them a place.

The sixth form Enrichment students who started in September are well underway with their Bronze training and have already practised their outdoor cooking skills. Students starting their Silver Award are just getting their enrolments completed and will soon be poring over the maps, planning their expedition routes for the spring.

You might say it’s a period of ‘in-tents’ activity!

JMF