Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE) is an extremely successful personal development programme for young people aged 14 to 24. It is popular with LCS students, providing an enjoyable, challenging and rewarding series of adventurous activities. As this is a personal undertaking rather than a competition against others, each student’s programme is customised to reflect their starting point, abilities and interests.

There are three progressive levels – Bronze, Silver and Gold – and LCS is a licensed centre for delivering and assessing the awards. Students at LCS start with the Bronze Award in Year 10.

Bronze Award (minimum 14 years of age)

Volunteering section – 3 months
Physical section – 3 months
Skills section – 3 months
Expedition section – 2 days / 1 night
+ 3 more months in either Volunteering, Physical or Skills sections

Silver Award

Volunteering section – 6 months
Physical and Skills sections: One section for 6 months and the other for 3 months
Expedition section – 3 days / 2 nights

Gold Award

Volunteering section – 12 months
Physical and Skills sections – One section for 12 months and the other for 6 months
Expedition section – 4 days / 3 nights
Residential section – Undertake a shared activity in a residential setting away from home for 5 days and 4 nights

The DofE is all about going the extra mile – gaining new skills, pushing yourself physically, helping others and exploring new territories. At the same time, students gather friendships, experiences and memories that will last a lifetime.