Duke of Edinburgh

The Duke of Edinburgh Award has been running at Talbot Specialist School for the last 7 years. Over this period, we have seen many students gain their accreditation and overcome many barriers along the way to achieve their award.

Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award

We offer the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award to our year 9 students. The award is designed to challenge both their physical abilities and also their independent skills. Throughout the year the Bronze level students have weekly lessons to gain the experience required to complete all sections of the award.

There are 4 sections that the students have to complete in order to pass the award, these are;

• Physical
• Skills
• Volunteering
• Expedition

All of the bronze award is carried out in school including the volunteering with two sections lasting 3 months and one section lasting 6 months.

Physical – We have a fantastic relationship with Hallamshire Squash Club. Everyone completing the award gets the chance to learn how to play squash with very experienced squash coaches. This also enables the students to become more independent by using the cafeteria and other areas of the club.

Skills – Each student learns a new skill or strengthens an already existing skill. For the bronze level award, we use cooking and swimming as part of their skill development.

Volunteering – We keep the volunteering in house and the students learn about the environment and why it’s important that they look after the school grounds and the surrounding environments. The students spend a few months clearing the school grounds of any litter and giving it a general tidy up.

Expedition – In order to complete their award, the students must complete a two-day, one night camping trip. We take the students to a campsite in Bakewell and we stay their overnight. Whilst on their expedition the students have to complete a walk throughout both days. We offer two separate walks, one which is fully accessible, flat and slightly shorter and one which is a little more physically challenging. The students complete their walk and then set up camp, this includes

• Pitching their tents
• Cooking on the stoves
• Making their beds
• Following route cards

Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award

The Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award is the next level challenge for our students. The silver award is designed to extend each students knowledge about the great outdoors and also develop new and existing skills along the way. The silver award is an extension of the bronze award and students are nominated for the award by Duke of Edinburgh staff.

There are 4 sections that the students have to complete in order to pass the award, these are;

• Physical
• Skills
• Volunteering
• Expedition

The students have to undertake a physical challenge, learn a new skill and complete their volunteering over a 6-month period.

Physical – During the silver award the students get the chance to learn how to ride a bike, this may consist of a two wheeled bike or a fully adapted trike or accessible wheelchair bike. The students spend some time learning this skill at Rother Valley Country park, ready for their final expedition.

Skills – To complete the skills section of this ward the students must learn a brand-new recipe and make this with support. By the end of the 6 months the students will make their chosen food as independently as possible, following the recipes.

Volunteering – For the volunteering section each student goes off-site and volunteers in local facilities. Currently our students volunteer at Graves Park Animal Farm and Oxfam Charity shop. This experience is vital and allows them to experience working in a everyday working environment, working with the customers. This helps support their independence whilst learning new skills.

Expedition – For the expedition the students undertake a longer trip than their bronze award. The camping trip is 3 days and 2 nights and they must complete this twice, a practice and the final expedition. Whilst on the expedition they must complete two days walking and one day cycling. The middle day is used for cycling and this is where they can put their newly developed skills into practice. They are also encouraged to be more independent with the walk and they work together as a team to follow route cards.

Presentation Evening

We have an annual presentation evening where the Duke of Edinburgh Award is celebrated. All students who have completed the award are invited with their families to attend an evening of celebration. Throughout the evening we display photos of the bronze and silver awards and this highlights to the families what their child has achieved. Celebration of our students is key part of our learning experience.

More information

Download copies of the information booklets for parents, contained in participants’ Welcome Packs here:

Bronze/Silver

Gold

www.dofe.org