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

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award is a registered charity and relies on the generous support of volunteers, Operating Authorities and businesses to meet its commitment to help all young people realise their full potential.

The Ten Key Principles of The Duke of Edinburgh's Award:

Non-Competitive: The Award is a personal challenge and not a competition against others. Each participant's programme is tailor-made to reflect the individual starting point, abilities and interests.

Available to All: With a commitment to equal opportunities, the Award Programme is available to all young people who choose to take up its challenge.

Voluntary: Young people make a free choice to enter the programme and commit their own time to undertake the activities.

Flexible: Young people design their own programme, which can be geared to their choice and personal circumstances and also to local provision. They may enter for whichever level of Award best suits them, and may take as long as they wish to complete an Award.

Balanced: By choosing activities in each of four different Sections (five at Gold), participants undertake a balanced and wide ranging programme.

Progressive: At each level, the Award Programme demands more time and an increasing degree of commitment and responsibility from the participant.

Achievement Focused: Before starting an activity, young people are encouraged to set their own goals. If they aim for those goals and show improvement, they will achieve their Award.

Marathon, not a Sprint: The Award demands persistence and commitment and cannot be completed in a short burst of enthusiasm. Participants may want to continue with activities beyond the minimum time requirements set out for each level of the Award.

Personal Development: The Award is a programme of personal and social development. The value to young people is dependent on personal commitment, the learning process and the quality of the experience.

Enjoyable: Young people and helpers should find participation enjoyable and satisfying.

The Award is a four-Section programme with three levels:

• Bronze (for those aged 14 and over)
• Silver (for those aged 15 and over) and
• Gold (for those aged 16 and over).

The Sections involve:

• Service (helping people in the community)
• Skills (covering almost any hobby, skill or interest)
• Physical Recreation (sport, dance and fitness)
• Expeditions (training for, planning and completing a journey on foot or horseback, by boat or cycle)
• Residential Project (Gold Award only) (a purposeful enterprise with people not previously known to the participant)

The delivery of the Award is entrusted to over 400 organisations (Operating Authorities) in the UK licensed to run the Programme through Award Groups in, for example, youth clubs, voluntary organisations, Open Award Centres, schools, colleges, young offender institutes and businesses.  Operating Authorities include local authorities and national voluntary organisations and they authorise Awards once applicable conditions have been met.

Award Groups are run by adults, many of whom are volunteers, including youth workers, teachers, employers, trainers, Instructors, Assessors and individuals from the community, all of whom wish to share their skills, enthusiasm and organising abilities to help young people reach their potential.

It would usually take a participant between 6-12 months to complete a Bronze Award; 12-18 months for a Silver Award and 18-24 months for a Gold Award. It may take less time for completion of the Silver or Gold Awards if the participant holds the preceding Award. All Awards must be completed by the participant's 25th birthday.

The Award is widely recognised by employers and people involved in education. Some of the benefits to young people include developing self-confidence and self-reliance; gaining a sense of achievement and a sense of responsibility; discovering new skills, interests and talents and developing leadership skills and abilities. They can also discover exciting opportunities; make new friends; experience teamwork, problem-solving and decision-making; increase their motivation; enhance their self-esteem and develop their communication skills. They will also, of course, have fun!

The Government has recognised that the Award has a valuable role to play within a young person's personal development. The Award is closely linked with many Government initiatives across the UK.

The Award gives opportunities for young people to:

• enjoy a wide variety of physical, creative and aesthetic experiences which encourage personal growth and development;
• experience new lifestyles and cultures outside their own immediate neighbourhood, possibly abroad;
• experience a variety of learning and teaching styles with people from different walks of life;
• take decisions of increasing complexity and accept responsibility for the consequences;
• discover new talents and abilities and test values and beliefs;
• give a continuing personal commitment of service to others;
• establish and sustain inter-personal relationships;
• negotiate their own personal programme of participation, seeking out and researching relevant information, and gradually take responsibility for their own learning;
• understanding their strengths and weakness, assess their personal level of competence, increase their own personal effectiveness and take responsibility for their own lives having a great time!

 For useful information please visit website http://www.theaward.org/participants/

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