Success, Character, and Dignity for All: Celebrating 245 Recipients of Bronze, Silver, and Gold Duke of Edinburgh Awards

On Thursday 2^nd November, we had the honour of welcoming our award recipients from Year 10 to Year 13 to celebrate their remarkable achievements; this year, we proudly recognised 159 Bronze, 84 Silver and 9 Gold award recipients.

It has been a joy to celebrate these accomplishments with our students. We extend our gratitude to Ben Willis, our DofE prefect, and Lottie Park, for their inspiring presentation on their Gold awards. We'd also like to acknowledge Thomas Kirby, DofE Ambassador, for his assistance in setting up the event and his ongoing support for the Year 9 students beginning their award journey. Special thanks go to Teddy Noonan for his outstanding piano performance tonight.

The volunteering section is truly invaluable, as it fosters personal growth, lasting friendships, and gives back to society. Last year, our SCD students contributed 4,095 hours of volunteer service, with a societal value of £19,695. At St Clement Danes, our commitment to the Duke of Edinburgh Award is rooted in a community driven model, where our dedicated staff and parents willingly contribute their time to support student achievements. We want to emphasise that it's not just the staff; it's also the assessors who write reports. With each student typically having four sections and potentially four different assessors, the 245 awards involve the participation of 980 individuals from our local community. To all those involved, we extend our heartfelt thanks for your time and dedication to our young people.

We are indebted to the staff members who provided expedition support at St Clement Danes. Mrs Parker, Mr Taylor, Mr Biswell, Mr Sorrel, Mrs Spencer, Mrs Ingleby, Mrs Wheatley and Dr Lowe have all played integral roles in this year's expeditions. Additionally, Miss Fennessy and Mrs Sivagaran have not only assisted with expeditions but have also played key roles in helping students initiate their awards and supporting them throughout their journeys.

Our gratitude extends to the many staff members who served as assessors for various sections, including Music, Drama, Lamda, PE, form tutors, language teachers, geography teachers, all the teachers who run clubs during lunchtime and after school and many more. The students greatly appreciate your time and effort.

The parents who volunteered for expedition support have been absolutely outstanding. Gareth Hanson, John Bard, Mark Leveridge, Nick Boyes, Norman Lienster, Rob Purbrick, Roel Jansen, Sarah Dobson, Trevor Brett, Clive Malcher, Isabelle Hems, Dylas Chan, Adam Bailey, Andrew Mortimer, Claire Skipsey, Eleanor Hooper, Graham Evans, Hilda Wright, Jude Hanson, Rachel Gauke, Rajshree Patel, Simon Archer, Andrew Wallace and Peter Edwards have collectively contributed over 200 days of volunteer support, with a value to SCD students worth £32,700. We are profoundly grateful for their dedicated time and effort. We would also like to acknowledge some of our longest serving parents, including Mark Leveridge with 85 days over 9 years, Trevor Brett with 70 expedition days over 6 years, Norman Leinster with 56 days over 6 years, Sarah Dobson with 25 days over 6 years, John Bard with 25 days over 5 years, Roel Jansen with 25 days over 5 years and Nic Boys with 20 days over 4 years.

Behind the scenes, each award undergoes rigorous checks by staff before being sent for verification. Chris Marks, the primary award verifier for our school, has meticulously reviewed every section of every award at every level over the last 5 years, totalling 867 awards (including 45 Gold awards) and 3,513 individual checks. We are grateful for his dedication to ensuring the quality of our awards. We also extend our appreciation to Mohan Gharial, who is stepping down as a verifier, and welcome Jaime-Lee Keene, a parent and parent governor, to assist Chris in this crucial role.

To all the award recipients, we hope that you continue to embrace the challenges and opportunities that come your way. Your experiences will undoubtedly shape your character and open doors for years to come.