Duke of Edinburgh Award

THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH AWARD FOR LEADERS

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award aims to provide for young people an enjoyable, challenging and rewarding programme of personal development, which is of the highest quality and the widest reach.

Duke of Edinburgh's Award - Mailout Update February 2008

WONDERING HOW TO GET INVOLVED IN THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH'S AWARD?

There are many levels and different ways you can get involved in the Award as a Girls' Brigade Officer:

Encourage Brigaders and young Officers in your Company to take part in the Award.

Attend a Girls' Brigade, Duke of Edinburgh Conference to learn more about the Award and how to operate it within your Company. (See courses & conferences link at the bottom of this page)

Pass on what you know ... offer your time and talents to help participants tackle the, service, skills or physical aspects of the Award.

Get yourself a GB Certificate of Competence, (one training weekend followed at a later date with an assessment weekend), it qualifies you to instruct girls in all aspects of Expedition and Exploration, at all three stages of the Award. It also qualifies you to assess girls on these aspects of the Award at Bronze and Silver level. (See courses & conferences link at the bottom of this page)

N.B. GB members can also participate in the annual Boys' Brigade run " Expedition Leadership Training " which covers training & assessment for leaders in the same weekend (see photo & written insert below). On completiton of this training they can then apply to GB HQ for their GB Certificate of Competence.

Got your GB Certificate of Competence? What about further qualifications in assessing the Expedition section of the Award, i.e. BELA, Mountaineering or First Aid Courses (Contact GB HQ for more info)

Take on the role of Duke of Edinburgh Advisor for your Division.

Get involved with the Award at GB National level, contact GB Scotland's National Director and express your interest.

BB / GB JOINT: DUKE OF EDINBURGH EXPEDITION LEADERSHIP TRAINING

Six GB Members, from across Scotland attended the Boys' Brigade "Expedition Leadership Training Weekend" at Carronvale, May 2007. This was a very well presented course, run by instructors with vast amounts of knowledge and personal experience of both hillwalking in Scotland and abroad with groups of youngsters, and the D. of E. Award itself. Whether an absolute beginner at expedition work or with a reasonable amount of knowledge & experience the course was benificial for all levels, split as it was into Basic, Standard and Advanced stages.

All the GB members who attended this course felt they gained a lot from it and would be happy to recommend it to others.

STARTING OUT CAN SEEM DAUNTING, BUT JUST TAKE IT A STEP AT A TIME!

For an overview of the Award and the programmes available consult the Duke of Edinburgh's Award website (link below).

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Website

www.theaward.org

Or refer to the publications listed at the foot of this page, available for purchase through GB HQ.

For how to organise and run a group within your GB Company, Division, etc. : GB HQ are available to help and assist with any and all queries, no question too big or small. Below are the answers to some frequently asked questions that may help you, but if you still have a query, just pick up the phone and ask for Mary Johnstone (Mon - Wed), or e-mail qa@girls-brigade-scotland.org.uk.

Remember the Duke of Edinburgh Award is open to everyone and can be tailored for those with special needs to still provide a challenging programme, please contact GB HQ for help and advice on this.

FAQs

Q: Help! Our Company have never done the Duke of Edinburgh before, where do we start?

A: Contact your Division's Duke of Edinburgh Advisor or GB HQ for help and advice.

Q: There's a lot of publications available for the Duke of Edinburgh's Award (see bottom of page), how do we get them, what are they all for and when do we need them?

A: Just contact Mary Johnstone who deals with the Duke of Edinburgh's Award (& Queen's Award) at GB HQ to purchase D of E material. The essentials to start with are a handbook and a programme file for your Company - your Division may have these already. See the list at the bottom of the page for details of when to use all the other materials plus prices and postal rates.

(N.B. - Duke of Edinburgh's Award materials are no longer available through GB Scotland's Mail Order Supplies Department)

Q: Can GB Leadership Training count towards the service section for the Bronze Award?

A: No, Leadership Training cannot be used for Bronze, but Leadership 1 & 2 can count towards the service for the Silver Award and Leadership 3 (Warrant Officer Training) and / or Basic Officer Training can count towards service for the Gold Award, along with practical service in the Company.

Remember: Girls under the age of 18 can HELP with the younger sections but would NEVER be responsible for, or left alone with younger girls. / Girls 18 and over MUST complete a GB RM1 form as an Auxiliary Helper / Officer and have completed an Enhanced Disclosure Check before being able to HELP or take a more responsible position with girls in the younger section.

Q: Can GB Company Service be used for the service section at Bronze Award?

A: Yes, under YOUTHWORK in the D of E Programme File, girls can help with the Explorer or Junior sections at Girls' Brigade for their Bronze Award.

Q: We have a girl who'd like to do a particular subject for a section of the Award and we can't find the subject in the Programme File, can she still do it?

A: Yes - first stop - look on the Duke of Edinburgh's Award web page (link at bottom of this page), they have some subjects listed on the website that don't appear in the Programme File - mainly in the skills section. If you still can't find what you're looking for draft out a suitable programme of your own and submit it to GB HQ for approval, its best to wait until you have approval before starting it, just in case it needs major re-planning or is rejected.

Q: We don't have Officers trained to teach the expedition section, what are our options?

Well Officers can train, refer to the GB, D of E Courses and Conferences (link at the bottom of this page) for information on Certificate of Competence and further qualifications.
Contact your Division's D of E Advisor and if she's unable to train the girls herself she should be able to advise who else in your Division is qualified to do so, i.e. another GB Company Officer, or BB or other Award Group in your area ...OR ...the girls could participate with another group in your area attending and linking in with their training, practice and actual Expedition.
If there's no one else locally contact GB HQ for help and advice.

Q: We don't have enough girls to do an expedition on our own, how can we contact other groups participating in the Award?

You can contact your Division's D of E Advisor. Your Division may organise Divisional Expeditions that your girls can participate in OR she should be able to advise you which other Companies in your Division are participating in the Award, and who to contact to link up your girls with their group.
If that has not helped, contact GB HQ for help and advice.

Remember: GB Scotland organise a National Open Gold expedition for all GB D of E GOLD participants across Scotland. See current info for more details.

Q: Can you use a Girls' Brigade Camp as a Gold residential experience?

A: No you cannot use a Company / Joint Company or Division camp, however you could use a GB National Camp, or even an International Camp (Fonomarae). Contact GB HQ for details of these or check the current info on the website for these and other residential experience opportunities.

Remember: Approval for a camp / festival / conference / etc. to be used as a Duke of Edinburgh's Award residential experience MUST be gained from GB HQ PRIOR TO THE EVENT. Applications should be made in writing to Headquarters.

Q: Can you use a Camp America, or similar, as a Gold residential experience?

A: Camp America may be used, however the period of service counting towards the residential experience must be unpaid.

AGES & TIMESCALES FOR EACH OF THE SECTIONS OF THE AWARD

BRONZE	MINIMUM AGE OF ENTRY - 14 years
	SERVICE	SKILLS	PHYSICAL RECREATION	EXPEDITIONS
	3 months	3 months	3 months	Plan, prepare for and undertake a 2 day, 1 night venture
	ALL PARTICIPANTS must undertake a further 3 months in either Service, Skills or Physical Recreation Section.
	MINIMUM PERIOD OF PARTICIPATION
	6 months

SILVER	MINIMUM AGE OF ENTRY - 15 years
	SERVICE	SKILLS	PHYSICAL RECREATION	EXPEDITIONS
	6 months	One Section for 6 months and the other section for 3 months		Plan, prepare for and undertake a 3 day, 2 night venture
	DIRECT ENTRANTS must undertake a further 6 months in either the Service or the longer of the Skills or Physical Recreation Sections.
	MINIMUM PERIOD OF PARTICIPATION
	DIRECT ENTRANTS	12 months	PREVIOUS AWARD HOLDERS	6 months

GOLD	MINIMUM AGE OF ENTRY - 16 years
	SERVICE	SKILLS	PHYSICAL RECREATION	EXPEDITIONS	RESIDENTIAL
	12 months	One Section for 12 months and the other section for 6 months		Plan, prepare for and undertake a 4 day, 3 night venture	Undertake a shared activity in a residential setting away from home for 5 days and 4 nights
	DIRECT ENTRANTS must undertake a further 6 months in either the Service or the longer of the Skills or Physical Recreation Sections.
	MINIMUM PERIOD OF PARTICIPATION
	DIRECT ENTRANTS		18 months	PREVIOUS AWARD HOLDERS	12 months

Congratulations to 1st Law Company who received a grant from South Lanarkshire Council Renewable Energy Fund to purchase equipment for their Duke of Edinburgh's Award Expeditions. Everyone looks very happy with their new equipment ... and they made it into the local paper too!

THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH'S AWARD MATERIALS AVAILABLE THROUGH GB HQ ALL DUKE OF EDINBURGH ORDERS SHOULD BE SENT TO THE AWARD ADMINISTRATOR AND MUST BE SEPARATE FROM ANY SUPPLIES ORDERS. CHEQUES MADE PAYABLE TO THE GIRLS’ BRIGADE SCOTLAND. THANK YOU.
ALL Duke of Edinburgh's Award material is subject to price increase by the Award Office.
CODE	DESCRIPTION	... & WHEN TO USE	PRICE
A	Girl's Bronze Entrance Pack (including Bronze Book)	When a girl is registered for the Award and pays her entrance fee she will receive the entrance pack, including the record book for the appropriate level she has entered at Bronze / Silver / Gold See below for P&P cost for Entrance Packs & Award Applications	£11.00
B	Girl's Silver Entrance Pack (including Silver Book)		£11.00
C	Girl's Gold Entrance Pack (including Gold Book)		£16.50
D	D of E Award Handbook - Sets out the principles and requirements of the Award Programme and details the steps to follow when setting up and operating an Award Group - essential for all Companies undertaking the Award.		£5.95
E	D of E Programmes File - Contains detailed advice and sample programmes for each Section of the Award, in alphabetical order - this information is also available on the D of E website - but the file is a good resource for girls to look through and find out about all the options open to them. A copy or access to a copy (Divisional copy) is more or less essential for Companies undertaking the Award.		£19.95
F	D of E Interactive Award Materials CD ROM (Award Handbook & Programmes File) - This CD ROM presents the new Award Handbook and Programmes File in an easily navigable, interactive way. Allowing instant access to the information needed and the ability to print the pages required.		£12.99
H	Girls' Brigade, D of E Bronze Hillwalk Book - Produced by GB Scotland, this booklet is to help people who are new to the Award and find the prospect of finding and planning a route daunting, or for people who just want to try a new walk that has already been walked by someone else.		£3.30
I	D of E Expedition Guide -This comprehensive guide is aimed at young people as well as leaders and all those concerned with expedition training. It provides instruction in the basic skills of outdoor pursuits such as: Equipment; Campcraft; Navigation; Safety & Emergency Procedures. (The author Wally Keay, the Award's National Technical and Safety Advisor, a former chairman of the Mountain Leader Training Board and author of the Award's Expedition Guide, has spent over 40 years involved in outdoor education)		£17.95
J	D of E Exploration Resource Pack CD, (including £4.00 p&p) - A good resource for Expedition / Exploration Training . Aimed at all those who wish to find their way on land, from the novice on the local common to the alpinist venturing into the mountainous regions of the world, this best selling book is primarily written for those travelling on foot, although the tequniques are equally applicable to the cyclist, the horse rider and those using canoes and boats on inland waterways. (Author, Wally Keay: as above)		£16.50
K	D of E Land Navigation Book - The Exploration Resource Pack will take you through the steps of creating your own Exploration and provides you with some project ideas.		£17.99
L	D of E Expedition:Over to You Book, including CD - This booklet focuses on the Expedition Section and aims to improve the quality of the Expedition experience for young people by helping to enhance the quality of the Award Leader,Instructor, Supervisor and Assessor training. It has been designed to: meet the needs of trainers when training Award Leaders include as many different training ideas and methods as possible mirror the content of the Expedition Guide ase examples across the Award age range / user groups cover the key issues in the Award's Expeditions Section provide cross references to other literature, particularly the Award Handbook,Programmes File, Expedition Guide and Exploration Resource Pack		£15.00

ALL DUKE OF EDINBURGH ORDERS SHOULD BE SENT TO THE AWARD ADMINISTRATOR AND MUST BE SEPARATE FROM ANY SUPPLIES ORDERS. CHEQUES MADE PAYABLE TO THE GIRLS’ BRIGADE SCOTLAND. THANK YOU.

POSTAL CHARGES FOR ENTRANCE PACKS & AWARD APPLICATIONS
ENTRANCE PACKS	1st Class	2nd Class
1 entrance pack	£1.56	£1.14
2 entrance packs	£1.85	£1.67
3 or 4 entrance packs	£2.10	£2.05
5 or 6 entrance packs	£4.52	£3.40
7 or more entrance packs	Courier Delivery - £8.75
AWARD APPLICATIONS	1st Class	2nd Class
1 Bronze / Silver	£0.87	£0.84
2 / 4 Bronze / Silver	£1.09	£1.03
5 / 8 Bronze / Silver	£1.68	£1.51
1 Gold	£1.07	£1.02
2 / 4 Gold	£1.34	£1.20
5 / 8 Gold	£1.50	£1.45
POSTAL CHARGES FOR ALL OTHER DUKE OF EDINBURGH MATERIAL
To be calculated on size, bulk & weight of complete parcel, please contact Mary to advise on postage for a specific order.

USEFUL WEBSITE LINKS FOR THE EXPEDITION SECTION
www.outdooraccess-scotland.com	Know the Code before you go.
www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk	Everything you could ever want to know about maps.
www.ramblers.org.uk	Advice on walks, equipment, map reading and outdoor safety.
www.cyclingscotland.org www.cycle-n-sleep.co.uk	What about an Expedition on bicycle rather than on foot? A couple of useful websites with cycling safety advice and details of national cycling routes.

CAMPING OUT OF DOORS: Make sure D of E participants understand the risks of E. coli O157 and the simple precautions they can take to avoid it. Please include the advice in this government health leaflet as part of training. (click on the picture to open the pdf document link)

For more information visit www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/Recent and enter 'E. coli' in the keyword search

NEEDING SOME NEW TEAMWORK CHALLENGES OR ICEBREAKERS FOR YOUR D of E GROUP?

See TRAINING for down loadable resourses

	Girls' Brigade, Duke of Edinburgh, Candidates' Page
	Girls' Brigade, Duke of Edinburgh, Divisional Advisors
	Girls' Brigade, Duke of Edinburgh, Courses & Conferences
	Duke of Edinburgh Award at Guay

USEFUL DOCUMENTS

(Page checked & updated 14/08/08)

Any problems with, or comments about, this website please click on this link and e-mail GB Scotland