¶ DofE Bronze Award
¶ 🔍 Overview
The DofE Bronze Award is the first of three awards the Duke of Edinburgh Scheme offers and is often the starting point for youth looking to challenge themselves.
📌 Who is it for? Anyone aged 14-24. If you're in England & Wales, you must be at Year 9.
📌 How does it link to Scouts? It closely aligns with the Chief Scout Platinum Award, meaning you can complete both awards simultaneously using the same activities.
📌 Why should you do it? It sets you up for the Silver and Gold. It helps you build resilience, teamwork, and confidence; plus, it looks great on university applications and job interviews!
¶ ☑️ Requirements
¶ 1. Volunteering/Physical/Skills section
- Volunteering: 3 months
- Physical: 3/6 months
- Skills: 3/6 months
You must complete an additional 3 months in one of the Volunteering/Physical/Skills section
- Depending on your chosen time frame, you must do the same activity for at least 12 or 24 weeks. You must show ongoing commitment, with at least one hour per week. One of the Physical/Skills sections must be 6 months.
- Weeks can be missed (i.e. illness), but you cannot count this; you need to show commitment over time. This means a three-month section can take five months
- Get your activity approved by your DofE leader and select an assessor.
Note: Assessors cannot be family members and must have experience in the activity you're doing (i.e. Physical, football coach)
I did Young Leaders (Volunteering), Guitar (Skills), and Running (Physical), which led me to achieve the Bronze DofE.
¶ 2. Expedition section: 2 days/1 night
Preparation:
- Attend mandatory training
- Plan your route with your team.
- Plan a hot meal to cook as a team (mandatory)
Walking guidelines:
- Distance: 12-14km per day (total: 24-28km minimum)
Team Size:
- 4-7. Anything below three team members will be a failure for safety.
You will use an Ordnance Survey map, a navigational compass, and a copy of your route to navigate. You will be supervised remotely, and there will be water breaks along your journey.
Tip: Focus on contour lines when planning your route; they are important, as they show height above sea level.
¶ ⌚ Example Timeline
This is a suggested timeline I made, based on my personal experience. Your progress may vary depending on when you start each section.
- 0-4 months: Join DofE/Start Activity
- 2-4 months: Achieve Physical Section
- 5-6 months: Achieve Volunteering Section
- 6-7 months: Achieve Expedition Section
- 7-8 months: Achieve Skills Section
- 8-9 months: Achieve DofE Bronze
¶ 🧠 Lessons Learned
- Blisters hurt really bad. This can end your expedition early, so prevent them before they become a problem!
- Stretching will help reduce pain and lower the chance of injury.
- Get the evidence for each week, as it's essential.
- Take part in navigation together and double-check each other.
- Your team will be as fast as your slowest person; stay together!
¶ 📚 Helpful Resources
- Why should you do the DofE?
- DofE for Newbies
- Dealing with Blisters on your DofE Expedition
- Packing your DofE Rucksack
- What to Eat on a DofE Expedition
- Doing your DofE experience on a budget