Harrogate Grammar students have completed outdoor sections of their Duke of Edinburgh Award challenges in a sign of things returning to normal.
More than 200 Harrogate Grammar students have completed outdoor sections of their Duke of Edinburgh Award challenges this month in a welcome sign of things getting back to normal.
Eighty Year 11 students spent May Day Bank Holiday weekend completing the practice DofE Bronze Award expedition, which was postponed due to lockdown last year.
They then went straight on to the two-day expedition - the final challenge of the award which tests young people’s problem solving, life skills, resilience and more.
This was followed by an unprecedented 144 Year 10 students completing training expedition walks aimed at developing their teamwork, communication and camping abilities ahead of their qualifying DofE Bronze Award expedition in June.
Neil Renton, Headteacher at Harrogate Grammar School, said:
“It’s wonderful to see our students getting back to normal school life, including the DofE challenge.
“Learning is not just about being in the classroom, the skills they develop through our wide range of extra-curricular activities will serve them well for life.”
Teachers Jake Kempton and Laura Chesworth, who organised the expeditions, said the students were delighted to be back outdoors, enjoying testing themselves alongside their friends.
Mr Kempton said:
“Seeing the looks on students faces and receiving feedback from parents shows the scheme has had such a positive impact.
“It would have been easy to cancel the expeditions again this year but after the challenging 12 months these young people have had we thought it was massively important to go ahead.”
And Mrs Chesworth added it was crucial that the Year 11 students completed the outdoor expedition - as they had already spent the last two years completing the award’s other qualifying sections, which involve physical challenges, learning new skills and volunteering:
“They’ve shown resilience, flexibility and worked hard to adapt their challenges to still meet the criteria during lockdown.
“We wanted to do them justice by seeing them complete the award as a whole.”
Mr Kempton added:
“We were particularly proud to deliver the expeditions this year as it felt like a fitting tribute to the Duke of Edinburgh. As teachers we take great joy in being out there with the students as part of an experience that creates lifelong memories.”
In order to satisfy the unprecedented demand for DofE expedition places, extra staff volunteered to help supervise, and outdoor adventure organisers the Lupine Adventure Cooperative provided enough trained and qualified DofE expedition leaders to allow everyone to take part.
In addition to DofE, Harrogate Grammar School is planning to resume other extra-curricular activities in the coming weeks.
Year 11 and Year 13 will be heading to Flamingo Land next week, whilst Year 12 students studying a BTEC in Outdoor Education have already resumed their practical studies and are taking part in their own expedition in Swaledale and Wensleydale.
Year 7 students are looking ahead to the Humanities visit to Bolton Abbey, whilst Geography fieldwork trips are in the pipeline including a Year 9 residential trip to the Lake District next Spring.
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