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Duke of Edinburgh's Award
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Any student aged from 14 can enter the programme of which there are three levels. These are Bronze, Silver and Gold, which ultimately lead to a Duke of Edinburgh's Award.
The Award is achieved by completing a personal programme of activities in four sections (five if you're going for Gold).
These activities can include helping people or the community, getting fitter, developing skills, going on an expedition and more! The programme is completely designed by the student.
The three Levels of programme
The main differences between the programmes are the minimum length of time it takes to complete, how challenging it is and the minimum age you can start.
Depending on your age, you are free to start at any level but most people prefer to try for Bronze and work upwards. There are age restrictions for each one so it makes sense to build up rather than dive in at the deep end.
The table below shows the different overall age restrictions and time requirements for each level.
| Level | Minimum Age to Start | Minimum Length of Time |
| Bronze | 14 Years | 6 months |
| Silver | 15 Years | 12 months |
| Gold | 16 Years | 18 months |
Students have to achieve challenges in four of the five areas (five for Gold). The area's are:
Volunteering (eg coaching, teaching and training, helping people)
Physical (e.g water sports, team sports, extreme sports)
Skills (e.g activities in areas such learning and collecting, creative arts)
Expedition (e.g by foot, boat, canoe, wheelchair, horseback)
Residential (e.g activity based, service to others, learning)
Related Documents
- D of E - Parental Consent Form (43kb)
- D of E - Sections Form (24.5kb)
- DoE Calendar 2011-12 (31kb)