Well, the Duke of Edinburgh Award is not just about going hiking up a mountain: it is a voluntary, non-competitive programme for 1° to 4°EM, designed to develop skills, confidence, and resilience by completing different activities. When you sign up, you are given a mentor who helps you to choose which activities you will do in four core areas: volunteering, physical activity, developing a skill, and an expedition.

We currently have 13 pupils from 1°EM completing the Bronze Award which means that they have been doing their activities over the past three to four months. This has included learning complex songs on the drums, helping fundraise for charities, improving sprint times, and developing new skills on the football pitch. Every time the pupils have done an activity, they have logged it on the DofE website called the ORB (Online Record Book) to track their progress.

Obviously, the most enjoyable part of all of this is the expedition: back in June we did our practice journey around Pichilemu over two days, learning how to use a compass, how to read a map accurately, and how much pasta is too much pasta. This is the lagoon we camped next to:

Last week, the pupils completed their assessed journey in Los Manzanos. They hiked a trail in groups carrying all of their food and equipment on their backs, over rocks and through forests, before camping overnight. The pupils jumped in the river, found different types of flowers, played card games, and ate slightly less pasta than last time:

We are delighted to announce that they all successfully completed the journey. Next year, they will have the opportunity to achieve their Silver Award which involves similar activities with a slightly increased difficulty.

So what is the Duke of Edinburgh Award? It’s the chance to improve yourself, help people in your Community, and have some fun with your friends (possibly up a mountain). If you would like to join us next year then we will provide more details in March 2026.