Duke of Edinburgh - 2020 Enrolment

 

The Ongar Academy offers the Bronze and Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE) to students in Years 10 - 13.  The DofE is a great chance for your child to broaden their horizons, discover new interests and talents, have fun with friends, develop essential skills for their future and achieve an internationally renowned Award.

 

 

About the DofE

 

The DofE is non-competitive and open to all young people – it's about setting personal challenges and pushing personal boundaries. There are three levels of DofE programme which, when successfully completed, lead to a Bronze, Silver or Gold Award.

 

Through their DofE, students will make friends and memories and build traits like confidence, resilience and self-esteem, which can benefit mental health. They’ll gain skills and attributes for work and life, like problem-solving, team-working and self-motivation – and they’ll achieve an Award that’s recognised by top employers and can help them stand out when applying for uni or jobs.  

 

To achieve their Bronze or Silver Award, participants must complete four sections:

1. Skills,

2. Volunteering,

3. Physical,

4. and their Expedition.

 

Every young person’s DofE programme is personal to them – they can choose what they’d like to do for their Skills, Volunteering and Physical sections, and most activities can count. We will provide guidance and support, and students can either choose to continue an activity they already do or discover something completely new.

 

During and in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, participants who complete their Skills, Volunteering and Physical sections will also receive a DofE Certificate of Achievement – a formal recognition, by the DofE, of their efforts at this extraordinary time.

 

Activities for each section take a minimum of one hour a week over a set period of time, so they can fit around studying, hobbies and social lives. For more details about programmes and timescales, please watch the attached presentation and visit DofE.org/do.

 

About the expedition

 

The Expedition section involves your child working as part of a small team to plan their expedition’s aim, choose a location and do some training to make sure they're fully prepared – before spending two or three days and one or two nights in the countryside.

 

Ahead of this, they will take part in a one day training course covering basic expedition principles and introducing them to expedition equipment. This will be run by our outside provider, Lambourne End. They provide a lot of the equipment the student will require to complete the expedition, along with dedicated staff to support both the training and the expedition. Please see their presentation attached to understand what they offer. Their new prices for the coming season are £120.

 

There will also be a training session run by Lambourne End, in which your child and their group will plan their route and prepare. Participants will only be able to do their expedition if they attend the organised training.

 

 

The DofE and COVID-19

 

Your child can still have the full DofE experience, safely and in line with Government guidance, during the COVID-19 outbreak. The motivation and focus the DofE gives, and its positive impact on mental and physical health, can play an important role in helping your child navigate our ‘new normal’, safely expanding their world and giving them skills and experiences to open doors in the future.

 

As participants can choose and change their activities, they can pick ones that they can do while social distancing or from home. The DofE has provided useful advice and information, including activity and volunteering ideas, at DofE.org/DofEWithADifference.

 

The DofE has also introduced a number of flexibilities to allow expeditions to take place safely, in line with social distancing restrictions and Government guidance. While your child’s expedition may look slightly different to those in previous years, they will be able to do theirs safely and with all the benefits and memories they’d get at any other time.

 

eDofE and the DofE app

 

Participants can create their DofE programme and record their progress using eDofE, the DofE’s digital system, available online at eDofE.org and through the DofE app – downloadable for free from Google Play and the App Store.

 

If your child decides to enrol, we will set up their eDofE account and they will receive details of how to sign in and get started. We will also hold an eDofE launch session on [date].

 

 

Signing up

 

The cost of taking part in the DofE is £25 per participant. This covers your child’s participation place and Welcome Pack, which will be sent to their home address and includes their personalised DofE Discount Card. Next year, a further £120 will be collected if you are happy for your child to participate in our planned expedition training and qualifying expedition, run through Lambourne End.

 

Please see further information below

If you would like any further information, please feel free to contact me.

 

Many thanks for your support and we look forward to helping your child to achieve through their DofE.

 

Mr Coleman

DofE Manager

Staffsco@theongaracademy.org