Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School
The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award
Gold Award Programme: 2014-2015
Format of Meeting
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Information about the DofE Award nationally
Demonstration of the DofE website
Information about the DofE Scheme at the school
General questions
Individual questions – after the meeting
Levels of the Award
At Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School we are offering the following:
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Bronze Award: Year 10
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Silver Award: Years 11 and 12
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Gold Award: Years 12 and 13
All participants have until their 25th birthday to complete the
award, but they do need to complete their award, and have it
approved by the DofE, before progressing onto the next level
Once started with DofE, participants can complete it at another
centre: they just need to arrange to transfer their account
Sections
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Volunteering: 12 months
Physical: 6 months
Skills: 6 months
Plus an extra 6 months for either the Physical or the Skills
Section – participant’s choice which one. Direct entrants
must do one of these sections for 18 months
Participation every week, averaging 1 hour per week. All
activities must be unpaid and extra-curricular
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Residential: 5-day residential
Expedition: Expedition Training then at least one 4-day
Practice Expedition then a 4–day Qualifying Expedition
Total time commitment: average of 450 hours to
successfully complete the award (Silver Award holders)/500
hours (direct entrants)
Completing the Award
For each section of the award, participants need to:
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Set objectives and choose a qualified assessor
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Submit programme planners and get them approved
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Submit evidence and personal comments at the end of each
section
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Get signed off by their assessor and submit assessor’s report
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Submit entire section and get it approved
Full information is on the DofE website: www.dofe.org
Recording Progress
Means of recording progress:
eDofE Website:
• Text entry
• Activity logs
• Photographs
• Video or audio files
• Activity programmes
• Team lists
• Course syllabuses
• Documents
• Certificates
• Letters of thanks
Only evidence submitted onto the eDofE website can be
accredited
Approval of Awards
The procedure for approving awards is:
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Participant uploads and submits evidence each week
DofE Co-ordinator checks and either approves or queries
evidence (giving reasons)
When section is complete, participant submits section
DofE Co-ordinator checks and either approves or rejects
section (giving reasons)
When DofE Co-ordinator has approved all four sections
(Volunteering, Physical, Skills and Expedition), award is
automatically sent to DofE for verification
DofE check award and either approve it or request
additional information or evidence
When DofE have verified award, participant receives email
confirming this from DofE
Certificate and badge are posted to school for presentation
Lunchtime Meetings
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Launch Meeting: Wednesday 8 October
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6 x Focus Meetings:
5 in Autumn Term
1 in Spring Term
Formal meeting takes about half an hour with time at the end
for individual questions
For Launch Meeting and Focus Meetings the Silver and Gold
Groups will be combined
Residential Section
Involves spending 5 days and 4 nights away from home on a
shared activity with people you’ve never met before
Example programmes could be:
• Helping on children’s camps
• Animal welfare
• Conservation
• Outdoor activities
• Sailing or watersports
• Cookery skills
• Drama or music
• Helping disabled people
• Overseas projects
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Details on National DofE website
Expedition Section
Possibilities for completing the Expedition Section:
• Approved Activity Provider: details on National DofE website
• Licensed Organisation (Buckinghamshire DofE, Milton
Keynes DofE): details on Buckinghamshire DofE website and
Milton Keynes DofE website: dependent on whether they will
be offering Gold expeditions in 2015 (both websites are
currently a year out of date)
• Zest for Adventure: dependent on obtaining the appropriate
licence and sufficient numbers to make it viable
• School: dependent on getting sufficient supervisory staff
Whatever options you decide to go for, you would need to
complete DofE approved: Gold Expedition Training, at least one
Gold Practice Expedition and a Gold Qualifying Expedition
Costs
Award Scheme:
• Award Scheme Fee: £150.00 – payable on enrolment. Nonrefundable
Residential Section:
£100.00-£500.00 in total: dependent on project undertaken
(typically £200.00-£350.00 in total)
Expedition Section:
• Expedition Fees: £400.00-£550.00 in total: dependent on
provider and numbers (Zest for Adventure or the school
may well not be able to offer an expedition programme for
this price)
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Equipment Hire: typically £23.50 per expedition (depending
on what you need) – hired from Buckinghamshire County
Council’s DofE equipment store at Green Park. Refundable
deposit required
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Expedition Travel, Food and Fuel
Communication
Communication with participants is by:
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Lunchtime and After-School Meetings
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Email Messages: to participants
School Website: The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award section
In addition, key information, particularly regarding expedition
arrangements, will be emailed to parents
We need to be kept informed of any changes to email
addresses
Application deadline: prior to the autumn half-term holiday
(direct entrants)/end of autumn term (Silver Award holders)
What Next?
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Read the Launch Letter, Scheme Information and Calendar
(available on the school website)
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Complete the Enrolment Form (available on the school
website) and hand in to the Finance Office
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Make payment of the £150.00 Award Scheme Fee by
ParentMail
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Attend the Launch Meeting at 13:45 on Wednesday 8
October
Contact
For information about the Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School
DofE Award Scheme, please contact the school’s eDofE
Website Co-ordinator:
Alison Richards
Telephone: 01296 688492
Mobile: 07751 594963
Email: alisonrichards07@gmail.com
For information about the Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School
DofE Expedition Programme, please contact the school’s DofE
Expedition Provider:
David Goss
Telephone: 01525 850368
Mobile: 07900 410327
Email: david.goss@zest-for-adventure.co.uk