Duke of Edinburgh Award

The Duke of Edinburgh Award is an exciting and adventurous way for students to gain a nationally recognised qualification which is acknowledged by most colleges, universities and employers; it will form an integral part of any student’s CV.  Apart from the personal benefits, this qualification can actually make the difference in securing a college or university place.
 
It is acknowledged that students who have completed the Duke of Edinburgh Award have the capacity to show endurance, commitment and team work.  It is also found that they gain in such things as confidence and fitness, as well as developing their social and overall learning skills.

The award is achieved by following a full 3 sectioned programme which is made up of Bronze, Silver and Gold.  The Bronze and Silver programmes involve completing 4 sections and the Gold involves completing 5 sections.

Whilst taking part in this qualification students will find that they will be drawing on knowledge and skills which they already have,  as well as expanding into new ventures and developing skills in areas that, for some, may not be first on their ‘to do’ list.

The 4 sections are divided as follows:

Section	Definition of section	Example of activity
Service/volunteering	Helping without pay to provide a service for someone	Babysitting, shopping for the elderly, fundraising for the community
Skill	Learning a new skill	Reading, decorating, gardening
Physical recreation	Taking part in some kind of sporting activity	Wii fit, football, badminton, walking
Expedition		Camping, canoeing, bike riding

Students interested in achieving this Award will start in year 9 at the Bronze level, following through to the Silver in year 10, and Gold is completed in year 11.

At Sheffield Springs Academy we pride ourselves on having one of the largest enrolment numbers in Sheffield, with approximately 10% of all our students involved in the Duke of Edinburgh Award.