Here at Heathfield we offer students an opportunity to take part in the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award Scheme.
This nationally recognised and valued award offers students a chance to show commitment, use initiative, learn new skills and gain in confidence.
There are four sections to the scheme, which are detailed on the Duke of Edinburgh Award website. The sections are:
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Skills - follow an activity and show progression and sustained interest for at least 3 months. Students may choose an existing interest or something entirely new but a deeper knowledge of the subject and an increased degree of skill must be attained. Physical activities such as dance, football, rugby or swimming should not be used for the skills section, even if they require a high level of skill.
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Volunteering - this includes Community or Voluntary work involving some briefing and training in the necessary skills to give that service. A minimum period of 3 months is required dependent on the activity.
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Physical - this involves participating in physical activity regularly (typically an hour per week) over the 3 month period. There are lots of suggestions for what counts as a physical activity on the website.
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Expedition - perhaps the most popular part of the challenge for many! A chance to learn navigation skills, camp craft and teamwork. This section is run on a voluntary basis by members of staff.
Students start the award in the autumn term of year 9 and complete their award in the last week of the academic year on a two-day training and expedition camp on the Quantock hills. This year we have seen record numbers of participants as we have worked hard to increase capacity and now have over 60 Y9’s enrolled in the award.
We have had a tough time on the expedition front with the Pandemic. Over the last couple of years lots of students have completed their three independent sections and have received achievement certificates for their efforts. In 2020 we ran expeditions over two days with students returning home to sleep. So far our current year 10’s have sadly had their expedition postponed twice but we are optimistic that we can rearrange that for early in the summer term.
More detail is easily available on the web: