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The Duke of Edinburgh Award

The Deanery High School and Sixth Form College is a Licensed Organisation for the Duke of Edinburgh Award.

We have trained staff who can deliver, support and assess all pupils in-house. This allows us to offer Bronze, Silver and Gold awards to meet individual needs and keep costs to a minimum.

All awards involve completing Volunteering, Physical, Skill and Expedition sections. Gold Award includes an extra Residential section.

We support pupils whilst they build their own unique Duke of Edinburgh programme with no competition among participants.

New programmes are rolled out at the beginning of the school year following an assembly for pupils. Support and guidance are provided throughout the year including regular pupil drop-in sessions and comprehensive training sessions.

 

Bronze Award

Available to all pupils from Year 9 upwards.

The course comprises:

  • 1 x Assessed Expedition for 2 days and 1 night.
  • One of the following options for the Skill, Volunteering and Physical sections for one hour per week.
Section Timescale Options

 
A B C
Volunteering 3 months 3 months 6 months
Physical 3 months 6 months 3 months
Skill 6 months 3 months 3 months

 

Silver Award

Available to all pupils from Year 10 upwards.

The course comprises:

  • 1 x Practice Expedition for 2 days and 1 night
  • 1 x Assessed Expedition for 3 days and 2 nights
  • One of the following options for the Skill, Volunteering and Physical sections for one hour per week.

Students who have completed the Bronze award

Section Timescale Options

 
A B
Volunteering 6months 6 months
Physical 3 months 6 months
Skill 6 months 3 months

 

Students who have not completed the Bronze award (direct entrants)

Section Timescale Options
A B C D
Volunteering 12 months 12 months 6 months 6 months
Physical  6 months 3 months 3 months 12 months
Skill 3 months 6 months 12 months 3 months

 

Gold Award

Available to all pupils from age 16 upwards.

The course comprises:

  • 1 x Practice Expedition for 3 days and 2 nights
  • 1 x Assessed Expedition for 4 days and 3 nights
  • Residential for 5 days and 4 nights
  • One of the following three options for the Skill, Volunteering and Physical sections for one hour per week.

Students who have complete the Silver award

Section Timescale Options

 
A B
Volunteering 12 months 12 months
Physical 12 months 6 months
Skill 6 months 12 months

 

Students who have not completed the Silver award (direct entrants)

Section Timescale Options
A B C D
Volunteering 12 months 12 months 18 months 18 months
Physical  6 months 18 months 6 months 12 months
Skill 18 months 6 months 12 months 6 months

Volunteering Section

Give up your time to help people, community, society, environment or animals. It must be for a charity or not for profit organisation.
Previous pupil examples – Mentoring, coaching a sports team, park run, charity shop, church, School Glebe, school clubs.

Physical Section

Any sport, dance or fitness which requires a substantial level of energy and physical activity. Pupils can develop their existing activities or start something new.
Previous pupil examples – Rugby, Netball, Squash, Judo, Ballet, Walking, Running, Horse Riding, Kayaking.

Skills Section

An activity which allows pupils to broaden their understanding and increase expertise in any field. Pupils can develop their existing activities or start something new.
Previous pupil examples – Crochet, foreign language, plant care, acting, singing, musical instruments, coding, sign language, learning to drive.

Expedition Section

Pupils train, plan and complete a self-reliant hike and camp with an agreed aim. School can provide some kit to be used during the expedition.

Residential Section

A shared activity with new people in a residential setting, stepping out of your comfort zone.
Previous pupil examples – Root Camp Croatia, canal barges, environmental trekking, tall ship sailing, youth activity holidays.

From the first day to the last it’s a real adventure and life changing experience. Every section gives pupils something different, loads of new experiences, discovering talents they didn’t know they had, challenging themselves and meeting people.

Please contact DofE Manager – Mrs S Vaughan to be a part of something new and exciting. svaughans@deanery.wigan.sch.uk

“It will not make you any taller, but it will make you stand out from the crowd.
It will not make you better looking, but you’ll attract the right kind of attention.
It will not make you famous, but you’ll achieve star quality.
It will not get you a degree, but it gives you a whole new angle on things.”

“My advice that I would give to someone thinking about doing the DofE Award is to go for it, as it’s a lot of fun and it’s a great experience but remember to bring a hairbrush on the Expedition!”

Thyona (Bronze and Silver)

“I think that the best part of the Expedition for me was being able to spend time with my friends, having a laugh and just overall enjoying the experience. I found it very enjoyable spending time in nature the whole time as some of the views were just extraordinary, and I would never have been able to see these views if I had not taken the opportunity to go on the journey.”

Charlie (Bronze and Silver)

“My biggest achievement was with my Volunteering in Wigan & Leigh Youth Cabinet where I gained funding to support young people with mental health through sport and activities.”

Alex (Direct Silver)

“My biggest achievement during Artistic Roller Skating for my Skill was completing both grades 1 and 2 much earlier than I had anticipated. It has helped improve my confidence both within the sport, and generally in life as well – this in itself, I find to be a major achievement.”

Liliana (Direct Silver)

“Advice I would give to someone thinking about doing the DofE Award.
I would encourage anyone. You develop some amazing life skills and have a real sense of achievement at the end. The main advice I would give is to pack essentials only. You have got to stay focused and motivated not just for the expedition but throughout the time you complete all your other sections.”

Amy (Bronze and Silver)

“My biggest achievement over the past couple of months was improving my violin technique as part of the Skills section. I have gained confidence to perform on stage because through JRNCM I have been able to perform with my quartet group twice and perform with my Chamber Orchestra also twice. In addition, I have also had the opportunity to perform with the Lion King musical and play with Nicola Benedetti.”

Megan (Bronze and Silver)

“In my opinion the greatest challenge, on my DofE was completing it with a knee problem, which makes it difficult to walk on unlevel surfaces after a certain length of time. I overcame this obstacle with help from my friends and teachers, providing me and my group with many breaks to rest, and assess the condition of my knee.”

Xanthe (Bronze and Silver)

Work Hard. Be Kind.
Make A Difference.

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