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2017 Expedition Season

Eyot Duke of Edinburgh : An invitation

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Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) programmes for the young people of the Henley-on-Thames area

Eyot DofE is pleased to announce recruitment for the 2017 season.

Please find the following information, attached. 1. DoE Overview 2. Expedition background 3. Draft programme 4. Adult roles 5. Cost information 6. Overview of The Eyot Centre

Contact information: Eyot Centre, Wargrave Road, Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire, RG9 3JD

DofE Manager: Kevin Nutt knutt.eyotdofe@gmail.com 0118 948 1425

DofE Co-ordinator Tom Crossland tom.dofe@gmail.com 07889 923 142.

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DofE Overview

The DofE Award Scheme offers wonderful opportunities for young people to take an active part in their personal development. They will:

• Have a great time and meet new people; • Improve their personal and social development; • Experience a range of exciting, challenging situations and new activities; • Develop new skills and discover new interests; • Become independent and build their self-confidence. • Develop a love for and confidence in the outdoors.

In addition, in this increasingly competitive world employers and university entrance boards are all looking for "well-rounded individuals". This is where the DofE programme can help make a young

person’s CV stand-out from the others in the pile on the desk and get them that valuable interview.

The DoE Award is aimed at every young person aged 13½ - 25 (see important note on ages below),

and has three levels: bronze, silver and gold. Each stage has four elements: volunteering, skill, physical recreation and expedition. There's a fifth element for the gold award: residential. Each element has a time commitment (from three to 12 months depending on the award stage) and

participants are expected to spend at least one hour a week on each element.

In 2016 the Eyot DofE Group plans to offer the Bronze, Silver and Gold Award programmes.

Sections of the awards are as follows. More details can be found at www.dofe.org.

Volunteering This means doing something for others. That could be volunteering to work with children, elderly people, providing first aid, helping in a charity shop or at a drop-in centre. The only stipulation is it has

to be helping other people, and you can't get paid for it.

Physical This means getting out and doing something: from trampolining, roller blading, Tae Kwon-Do or dancing to more traditional sports like canoeing, kayaking, football, rugby, rowing or swimming and running.

Skill This involves developing a skill. It can be almost any type of hobby or activity, from learning sign

language, photography, or playing an instrument. Sport can be part of skill if the young person is gaining a coaching or officiating award.

Expedition (See page )

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Most generally, this could involve trekking, canoeing, cycling or sailing somewhere. At Eyot this will

typically mean packing a rucksack and carrying a tent across the countryside (Bronze award) or canoeing the Thames with all the kit in the canoe (Silver Award).

The durations are as follows: Bronze award: 2 days, 1 night camping, at least 6 hours of activity during daytime Silver award: 3 days, 2 nights camping, at least 7 hours of activity during daytime

Gold award: 4 days, 3 nights camping, at least 8 hours of activity during daytime

Residential For the Gold level of the award this involves going away for at least five days and four nights. For more details look online on our website or at www.dofe.org

How old do the young people need to be? Bronze Award Participants may start any time after September 1 of their year 9 school year, but are not able to complete the award until they reach 14½yrs.

Silver Award Participants may start any time after September 1 of their year 10 school year. Participants need to have completed their Bronze Award unless they are a ‘direct entry’ (ie have not participated in the Bronze Award) and are aged 15 or above.

Gold Award No activities can be counted for the Gold Award before the young person’s 16th birthday.

How long does it take? There is no real time limit when it comes to completing a DofE Award as long as the participant is under 25yrs when they complete all their activities. The minimum time anyone can complete a Bronze

or Silver Award is six months, it’s usual to take a year upwards, a participant has to be at least 14½yrs before completing their Bronze Award, 15½ yrs before completing their Silver Award and 17yrs before completing their Gold.

Participants can work for any of their four challenges at any time: some will choose to be working on two or more at the same time while others will undertake one at a time. There is absolutely no rush as

the 25th birthday is the upper limit for completing any level of DofE.

What are the activities available?

Leaders will generally assist the young people in finding activities they would like to do for their DofE – often some will be hobbies in which the participants are currently involved. Have a look at our

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website (eyotdofe.com) and the DofE website (www.dofe.org) for ideas about the what to do for each

section.

The Eyot Centre will run and help the group organise the Expedition Section. If for some reason someone is not able to to do the expedition with the centre, we will help them join up with another

group.

To avoid any inappropriate activities being undertaken it is important that participants ask us before

they start any of the sections.

How do we keep track of how the young person is progressing?

eDofe The main way we keep track of the young person’s progress is through the eDofE website. Each

participant will be given a username to log in to eDofE and must record their progress on eDofE. If the person keeping track of your activities (your assessor) is happy to use the internet, it is best if they use eDofE to write their reports.

See Information at the end of this document or on the website for more details about eDofE. You will receive your username etc once you have registered with The Eyot Centre and paid the fee.

Keeping track book included in the welcome pack and discount card for Cotswolds Outdoors. If the your assessor would rather write in a book and not on the internet you can use your keeping track

book. Once your assessor has written their report you will need to scan/photo the report and upload it to eDofE.

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Activity Logs. These should be signed by your assessor. These are used to monitor the progress of

the awards while they are undertaken and are the key evidence needed to have an award signed off.

These are available on the website (www.eyotdofe.com)

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Note that participants must obtain signed authorisation on each form before starting each Section.

This is to prevent non-qualifying activities being undertaken unwittingly. For example canoeing and

rowing do not usually qualify for the Skill section unless they relate to coaching or refereeing; rather they qualify for the Physical section.

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DofE Expedition Background

The DofE Expedition Section has a full training programme that every DofE participant needs to

undertake before they will be allowed to take part in their qualifying expedition. This will include training in skills such as:

• Camp craft • Cooking • First aid • Navigation • Teamwork • Observation and recording • Emergency procedures • Awareness of risk and health and safety procedures • Country, Highway and Watersports Code

This training will be done both in theory and practical sessions. It is therefore important that the young people attends every session. This is to ensure the groups are safe when on expedition

During this training the DofE Leaders/Supervisors will gradually give the team more and more responsibility so that they are able to journey unaccompanied without the Supervisor present.

To encourage full participation in all sections of the DofE award participants will only be permitted to take place in the practice expedition if they can provide the evidence that they have started at least two of the other sections. This will need to be signed off by the Group Leader by the end of the final

planning session.

A practice expedition is arranged during which time the team has the opportunity to practice all of the

skills that they have learnt. One of these key skills is being able to make decisions for themselves without a Supervisor intervening. During the practice the team will therefore have the opportunity to travel without a Supervisor present and the Supervisor will supervise remotely. If necessary, more

than one practice expedition may be arranged.

On the assessed expedition the team will at all times be supervised remotely. This means that a

Supervisor will not constantly be accompanying the team, nor will they be in constant sight or sound of the Supervisor. The Supervisor will meet up with the team on a few occasions during the day and will see the team in the evening at the camp site. This allows the Supervisor to check on the team’s

safety and welfare whilst still allowing the team the experience of being on their own.

If you have any questions about these arrangements please do not hesitate to contact us.

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Programme Background

Bronze Award The programme will run January to June to complete the practice and assessed hiking expeditions before the autumn weather arrives. Expedition training sessions will run about once per month on a Sunday or Saturday morning 9.45am-noon or Thursday evening 7-9pm, see schedule. With their

group mentors, the participants will be expected to start the physical, skills and volunteering aspects of their award in the spring, with the awards being completed by 1 November 2017, so that their certificates can be presented at the end of November.

Silver Award Participants who have already undertaken Bronze award With an eye on GCSE examinations, activities from Easter 2017 will be focussed on training for a canoeing expedition; with practice expedition in June and assessed expedition in early September.

The training will be principally targeted at canoe skills to a level to ensure safe conduct of the expedition. This will be assessed by Henley canoe club qualified instructors – the requirements will be made clear at the start of the training.

In addition to the programmed events (see schedule), Tuesday evening sessions will be available so Silver and Gold award participants can complete their canoeing assessments. Silver participants will

need to attend all of these sessions to achieve the required level to take part in the 3 day unaccompanied canoe expeditions. Note that attendance at Tuesday night sessions is recorded by the club. As part of the safety assessment for the expeditions, participants will be withdrawn from the

year’s expedition if inadequate numbers of sessions are attended. The silver award demands a weekly time commitment from participants throughout the spring and

summer to achieve the required level of canoeing skill for expeditioning. While DofE very often proves an invigorating and welcome break from revision, we have found that some Y11 GCSE students can struggle to match the demands of canoe skills development with their studies. In fact

many of our most successful participants have resumed in the sixth form after a Y11 break – there is no rush!

With their group mentors, the participants will be expected to start the physical, skills and volunteering aspects of their award in January 2017, with a target completion date by Spring 2018.

All silver participants will be required to attend the start-of-season training hike and its preparation.

Participants who have not already undertaken Bronze award (direct Silver Award entry)

The training will be as above, but participants will also need to attend all Bronze award training events (except the practice and assessed hike weekends).

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Gold Award

Eyot Gold award expedition programme

This programme is offered by invitation only, typically to a small group (6-8) of successful participants of the Eyot Centre Silver Award.

If you would like to be considered for future Gold Award expedition programmes, please discuss with the centre. Please note that a strict age requirement of 16 is in place for starting any aspect of the Gold Award.

Gold award expedition through the Oxfordshire Open Expedition Group The Eyot Centre is also considering offering Gold Award registration and limited training to small

groups of participants who will undertake their expeditions through the OXPED programme. Please contact the centre so we can gauge interest in supporting this route.

More information is available at oxped.org.uk.

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Schedule for the 2017 season

The programme typically runs from December to September, depending on the award level. However the bulk of the training phase takes place on various Thursday evenings and Sunday mornings during the spring and early summer. Training hikes and expeditions typically take place over weekends.

Canoeists are also expected to commit to all Tuesday evenings during the Henley canoe club season.

For safety reasons we cannot allow participants to progress on to the expeditions without close to 100% attendance.

You should have received a schedule with this document – contact the centre for the most recent version otherwise.

Please note that dates are subject to change and are frequently updated throughout the programme.

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Costs

The Eyot DofE Centre offers an exciting opportunity for all the young people in our local community. Participants and their families are strongly encouraged to have a confidential chat with Pete Holloway, Centre Manager (07710 296 327) if financial support would encourage participation.

Bronze Award £178.00 Silver Award £270.00 Gold Award £150.00 Gold price Includes First Aid training course but does not include any trip or expedition costs, which will be discussed separately with participants at the time of invitation.

Please register via the website (www.eyotdofe.com) and pay via bank transfer. The details for a

bank transfer are:-

Lloyds bank Henley-on-Thames branch Account Name: Eyot Centre Sort code: 30-94-13 Account Number: 00249406

All payments should be by cheque, payable to “The Eyot Centre”

Payment covers the following costs: - Application fees for DofE programme - The Eyot Centre membership: DofE Group membership for the duration of the particular DofE award Automatic membership of Canoe and Dragon boat sections to 31 March 2018 - Insurance - Services of a Qualified DoE Leader/Coordinator - Expedition training and assessment (Bronze and Silver Awards only) - Camp fees (Bronze and Silver Awards only) - Loan of tents and stoves. For Silver and Gold Award - Loan of canoes, paddles, buoyancy aids and other safety equipment - Transportation of canoes

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Payment does not cover the following costs - Food for expeditions - Transport to or from expeditions - Any specialist training (including residential courses where applicable) - Any external club fees or additional costs associated with the Skill, Volunteering or Physical Recreation sections. - Bronze Award participants are required to have Ordnance Survey Map OS171

Adult roles

The success of the Eyot DofE Centre depends on its voluntary adult support. Here is a description of some of the volunteer roles required to run this programme:

� Expedition support You will assist on practice and assessed expedition weekends to help ensure the safe running of the weekends. DBS registration will take place in February. � Outdoors skills training You will assist at training sessions with camp skills, navigation skills, packing, food etc. � Qualified first aid trainer You will be a nurse, doctor or other qualified person to provide essential first aid training required for the participants to meet the standard for expeditions. � Communications/Administration coordinator You will help support an award programme (for example ‘Bronze 2016’), ensuring information is received reliably between the DofE Leader, mentors, assistants to parents and most importantly, the participants

New for 2016/17 � Award completion Co ordinator This is someone that will regularly stay in contact with past participants to encourage them to complete their award.

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Included for all DofE participants:

Henley Canoe & Dragon Boat Club Membership

As part of your young person’s subscription to the DofE Group, they automatically become members of The Eyot Centre including use of the Canoe and Dragon Boat sections.

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The Eyot Centre has a thriving, friendly canoeing club in Henley-on-Thames open to anyone over the age of 9 and of any ability. The centre is set in large grounds, on the river Thames, about 300m upstream from Henley Bridge. Access is from the Wargrave Road, with adequate car parking. The

clubhouse has a meeting hall with kitchen and changing facilities. Trained instructors have responsibilty each section, and safety is paramount on and off the river.

The canoeing youth section of the Centre is for those aged 14-17 yrs. They meet on a Tuesday evening all year round. There is canoeing every week through the summer months and a variety of activities are on offer during the winter. On the river you can gain British Canoe Union awards, test

your stamina in a time trial, take part in a canoe marathon, any number of activities. The emphasis is on having fun whilst gaining confidence on the water and improving your canoeing skills.

We also run weekend trips away from the Centre to other rivers, (Wye, Usk, Dart etc.) these trips enable you to gain white water experience and to put some of your skills to the test. Maybe you would like to do some canoe surfing on one of our coastal trips.

Our canoeing activities continue through the winter with sessions at the local swimming pool. An opportunity to learn to roll and to perfect some of those difficult manoeuvres in a warm and friendly

environment.

Come and join us it's great fun!

More details can be found at: http://www.eyot.org.uk/

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Expedition Training Sessions

All Thursday session will be between 7pm and 9pm at the Eyot Centre. All Sunday sessions will be between 10am and 12pm at the Eyot Centre Plan for the training walk, practice expedition and qualifying expedition to take all day/weekend - exact timings will be communicated during the training sessions.

Bronze Participants Silver Participants (Direct Entrants)

Thursday 17 November Introduction Evening (7-8pm) Introduction Evening (7-8pm)

Thursday 19 January Training Meeting the group, Team Building, essential kit to buy, eDofE and paperwork

Sunday 22 January Training Maps

Sunday 29 January Training Compasses and how do we know how far we have gone

Thursday 2 February Training Expedition Safety and First Aid

Thursday 9 February Training Choosing a route

Thursday 16 February Training How do we plan a route

Sunday 26 February All day

Training Walk Recap whole training framework

Thursday 9 March Training Starting to plan your route and what do we eat on expedition

Thursday 16 March Training Cooking a meal on a Trangia and what to pack

Thursday 23 March Training Putting up a tent and kit check for practice expedition

Saturday 25 to Sunday 26 March All Day both days

Practice Expedition Details to follow

Between Easter and Practice Expedition

Attend all Tuesday evening paddling sessions 7pm - 9pm

Thursday 4 May Expedition Planning Route Cards

NO SESSION SEE SILVER PLAN

Thursday 18 May Expedition Planning Route Cards and menu planning

Thursday 8 June Expedition planning Tying up loose ends and group kit collection

Saturday 24 to Sunday 25 June all day

Qualifying Expedition Details to follow

Thursday 6 July Presentation

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All Thursday evenings will be 7pm - 9pm Expect weekend session to take all day - exact timings will follow

Silver (Non direct entrants and direct entrants after Easter)

Thursday 17 November Introduction Evening (8-9pm)

Thursday 19 January Training Meeting the group, Team Building, essential kit to buy, eDofE and paperwork

Sunday 22 January Training

Sunday 29 January Training

Thursday 2 February Training

Thursday 23 March Training

Between Easter and Practice Expedition

Attend all Tuesday evening paddling sessions 7pm - 9pm

Thursday 4 May Training

Sunday 7 May Canoe training all day at Eyot Centre

Thursday 18 May Training

Thursday 7 June Trailer Loading - Kit collection

Saturday 9 June Sunday 10 June Monday 11 June

Practice expedition Details to follow

Thursday 6 July Route Cards

Thursday 20 July Route card hand in

Thursday 30 August Loading trailer - Kit collection

Friday 1 September Saturday 2 September Sunday 3 September

Qualifying Expedition Details to follow

Thursday 14 September Presentation

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