Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme – expedition

Aim of the expedition
To encourage a spirit of adventure and discovery.

The principles
All ventures involve self-reliant journeying in the countryside or on water, conceived with a purpose and undertaken without motorised assistance. The venture must present you with a challenge in terms of purpose, planning and achievement with minimum external intervention.

It is more in keeping with the principles of this Section to choose an environment and form of travel where you can venture with relatively remote supervision rather than undertake a journey which, for safety reasons, requires more direct supervision.

The venture involves:

• enterprise and imagination in concept
• forethought, careful attention to detail and organisational ability in preparation
• preparatory training, both theoretical and practical, leading to the ability to journey safely in the chosen environment
• shared responsibility for the venture, leadership from within the group, self-reliance and co-operation amongst those taking part
• determination in implementation
• a review of the venture in relation to its purpose

Types of venture
You may choose from the following types of venture:

• Expeditions which have journeying as their principal component
• Explorations which involve less journeying and a greater proportion of time spent on first-hand investigations or other specified activities

At Gold Level there is the additional option of:

• Other Adventurous Projects which are of an equally, or more demanding nature but which depart from the specified conditions

Benefits
This Section should provide opportunities to:

• plan and execute a task
• demonstrate enterprise and imagination
• work as a member of a team
• respond to a challenge
• develop self-reliance
• develop leadership skills
• recognise the needs and strengths of others
• make decisions and accept the consequences
• reflect on personal performance
• enjoy and appreciate the countryside

Requirements
The following requirements are for all types of venture:

• all qualifying ventures should have a clearly defined purpose
• on completion, you should review the venture and give an account or presentation related to this purpose
• unaccompanied ventures should take place between the end of March and the end of October
• ventures involve joint planning and preparation by all members of the group
• groups consist of between four and seven young people
• accommodation is by camping and all equipment must be suitable for the activity and environment in which the venture is to take place
• you must be trained in the skills necessary to undertake the planned venture
• you must undertake sufficient practice journeys to ensure that you are able to journey safely and independently in the chosen environment
• all ventures must be supervised and qualifying ventures must be assessed by suitably experienced people.