The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award

DofE is a brilliant way for your young person to discover just how much they are capable of. It gives young people the chance to make new friends, follow their passions, learn new skills and make a difference in our community. Achieving a DofE Award is a great way to impress employers too. It helps young people to see themselves differently and gain a new level of confidence. We always say that after taking on your DofE, you know that whatever life throws at you, you’re ready to deal with it.

Millions of young people in the UK have already done their DofE.

Now it’s your turn.

DofE is non-competitive and a powerful way for every young person to build belief in themselves, whatever their background, interests and abilities. It is highly valued by employers and UCAS and provides valuable opportunities for young people to develop ‘soft skills’ such as leadership, resilience and communication. We reintroduced DofE to Paignton Academy at the start of 2022 and have seen many of our young people sign up and are very proud of the work they put in to achieve their awards.

What’s involved

There are three levels, Gold, Silver and Bronze. At Paignton Academy we are currently offering Bronze and Silver. As the level increases, so does the level of commitment expected from a young person. A Bronze award will take a minimum of six months. Participants can enter directly at Silver level and should speak to the DofE manager if they wish to do so. However, most students prefer to start with Bronze and progress through. We offer the Bronze award to Year 9 and 10s and the Silver award to year 10s

Students must complete four sections to complete their award:

• Volunteering (1 hour a week) – helping a community group or charity, for example coaching at a sports club, helping a conservation project or working in a charity shop.
• Physical (1 hour a week) – improving their fitness or sporting skills. This can be anything from walking or chess to physical sports such as swimming or going to the gym.
• Skills (1 hour a week) – improving a skill or learning a new one. Discover new passions and develop talents you didn’t know you had such as cooking, coding, learning sign language.
• Expedition – participants take part in a self-sufficient, independent expedition which has been planned by the team themselves. This involves stay at least one night away from home.

We use an external provider to help us run the expedition part of the Award. The cost of this is approximately £130 per participant. This includes all shared kit and safety equipment and fully trained staff from the external provider.

The DofE is a life-changing adventure that is as unique as your young person. Young people choose what they would like to do in each section and who they would like to complete the expedition with. Paignton Academy DofE Leaders can help to find opportunities for young people to volunteer but we ask that parents/guardians ensure they are happy with any placements offered.

How to take part

Your young person needs to be organised and have enough time to give to the award. They need to complete 1 hour a week of their skill, physical and volunteer activity and also attend multiple meetings and training sessions after school. To ensure your young person can take part, you need to fill in the enrolment form with some details and pay a £30 enrolment fee. Once you have completed the enrolment form, your details will be added to parent pay and you can pay the fee via the website. The enrolment fee gives your young person access to the online eDofE platform which will provide support for your young person throughout their award. This enrolment fee in non-refundable, should your young person decide that they no longer wish to complete the award.

Payment Support

Payments for the expedition can be made in instalments, as long as the full amount is paid before the deadline. Please email the Dofe Manager to check when the deadline is for your year. If your child is interested in taking part but the cost is prohibitive, please do speak to us as we may be able to arrange financial support.

Next Steps

Once you have filled in the google form, your young person needs to join the Duke of Edinburgh google classroom. They need to check their google classroom regularly as a lot of information is sent out this way.

Waterleat Road Bronze 23/24 – e2qrmkj

Borough Road Bronze 23/24 – jb76axm

Silver – svnxgdx

If you have any futher questions please email the DofE manager Mrs Firminger-Mathieu (dofe@paigntonacademy.org)

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