The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award expeditions

Bronze, Silver and Gold ‘The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award’ groups walked in the Cotswold hills in the Easter holidays.

Supervised by members of adventuring group H5 and staff from The Cotswold School, DofE students enjoyed brilliant sunny conditions and covered a total of 42 kilometres over two days – the equivalent of a marathon.

The Gold and Silver groups walked from Chipping Camden to Hayles Fruit Farm, Winchcombe, where they pitched tents and cooked a meal in the evening. Although overnight camping was not permitted due to the pandemic, they packed full kit to ensure they carried out an authentic expedition.

Bronze groups carried out similar trips on Saturday, the day of Prince Philip’s funeral. Before they set off, they held a minute’s silence in memory of the Duke. They walked from Bourton to Northleach and did the return route on Sunday.

DofE coordinator at The Cotswold School, Mr Ockleston, said:

“Any young person can do their DofE. Achieving an Award isn’t a competition or about being first. It’s all about setting personal challenges and pushing personal boundaries.

The school’s scheme, ‘Into DofE’ has been up and running for children in Year 8, to help them build the skills they can use in the Awards as they join Year 9, when they usually begin working towards the Bronze Award.

Find out more about The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award at The Cotswold School here.