DofE Ambassador Beth Griffin has written some words about getting involved with DofE!

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award is a fantastic way of gaining new skills and experiencing new things and is a great way of gaining confidence in your abilities. It’s £30 to get involved and I think it’s safe to say that the DofE provides a unique and once in a lifetime opportunity which you can take part in until the age of 25.

Growing up with mental health issues of my own, the DofE provides a great sense of achievement, and missing out on a lot of opportunities during my own school life, the DofE helps in filling in those gaps and is a great thing to put on your CV. Lockdown was quite a fear of mine as I thought I’d become quite inactive and the DofE has been great at keeping me motivated knowing that I need to do at least an hour of activity per week, active and has provided something to look forward to with new opportunities, and especially with the expedition and residential sections.

On the Gold Award, there is a Volunteering section, which is for 18 months, a Physical and a Skills section which requires 12 months for one section and another for 6 months. There’s also an Expedition which is for 4 days/3 nights where you’ll have practice and get to do things such as go to the countryside, camp (Covid permitting), do canoeing, horse riding, biking or you can do the expedition on foot. With the Gold Award, there is also a Residential section which is for 5 days/4 nights, and the Residential is where you can stay away from home and do a shared activity with people you’ve never met before, such as learning first aid/life-saving skills, cookery classes, go on adventures and do things such as high ropes and mountain climbing and do wildlife and marine conservation in another country.

During my own DofE experience, I’ve had the opportunity of learning British Sign Language, which I feel is a valuable skill to have as you never know when you may need it to communicate with people in the future. I’ve stayed active by doing regular home workouts and going for regular Walks, which I may not have been as motivated to do before and has helped in exploring my local area. I’ve also volunteered with the charity Kissing it Better, which aims to end isolation in the elderly which is particularly helpful now, it provides an opportunity to learn about their past and it has been nice knowing that I’m talking and sending things to people who have been isolated during the lockdown and the knowledge that they are being thought about.

I’ve also personally had new opportunities such as speaking on BBC Radio WM about the DofE and going to Birmingham Cathedral shortly after the Duke’s death to represent the DofE, which has improved confidence and has helped in feeling more part of the community.