What is the Duke of Edinburgh's award?  

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award (DofE) is a youth achievement award open to young people up to the age of 24. The popular award is thriving at Ridgewood with large numbers of students taking advantage of the school’s involvement in the scheme every year. We have been running a very successful programme for a number of years and the school is now a Directly Licensed Centre (DLC), as we hold our own licence to deliver DofE programmes to young people on our own premises.

The DofE Award consists of three levels: Bronze, Silver and Gold. Each level has four sections: Physical, Volunteer, Skill and Expedition. The Gold Award also has a residential component. More information about the levels can be found by visiting https://legerdofe.com/

If your child is interested in taking part, or has already signed up, please visit https://legerdofe.com/ to find out all you need to know. This website is dedicated to sharing all the details parents have asked for about the expeditions and other elements of the award.

Drop-in sessions also take place after-school every Tuesday in N5 to help students with any aspect of their DofE training.

The Benefits

When your child undertakes their DofE programme, they will develop the skills and attitudes they need to become more rounded, confident adults, qualities that attract colleges, universities and employers. When you put your backing behind your child's pursuit of a Duke of Edinburgh's Award, you are investing in valuable skills and setting the tone for a lifetime of achievement.

You will see all kinds of new talents bloom in your child as they achieve their Award including:

• Self-belief
• Self-confidence
• A sense of identity
• Initiative
• A sense of responsibility
• A real awareness of their strengths
• New talents and abilities
• The ability to plan and use time
• The ability to learn from and give to others in the community
• New friendships
• Problem solving, presentation and communication skills
• Leadership and teamwork skills

  Read the article in The Guardian (February 2016) which recommends including your D of E experiences on your CV.

When will the training take place?

Drop-in sessions also take place after-school every Tuesday in N5 to help students with any aspect of their DofE training. 

You can also download an app that gives you all the information you require about DofE. The link for the app can be found on the main page of https://legerdofe.com/.

Each award will require the student to complete the following for their expedition:

• One weekend training day
• One full training weekend
• One full weekend practice
• One full weekend assessment

The training will cover map reading, compass skills, camp craft, cooking in the outdoors, First Aid and The Country Code.