Celebrating DofE Gold

Courtney, Laura and Rebecca from London Over the Border county celebrated achieving their Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s (DofE) Award in Buckingham Palace Garden, hosted by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh in his first celebrations as Patron of the DofE charity.

The celebration was one of four taking place over a week in May at the Palace, recognising around 9,000 young people who have shown extraordinary perseverance, creativity and resilience to complete their Gold DofE in community organisations, youth groups, schools and workplaces all over the UK.

Buckingham Palace Garden was transformed into a festival-style celebration for young people and their loved ones, with giant deckchairs, bunting, garden games and activities. Attendees had the chance to hear from famous DofE Award holders and other inspiring speakers.

The Gold DofE programme is a non-competitive personal challenge open to all young people, which takes a minimum of 12 months to complete. Young people build their own programmes with activities in five sections – physical, skills, volunteering, a five-day residential and a four-day expedition.

“DofE was an amazing experience that I will never forget. It was a challenge that I thought I would never complete. If it wasn’t for my group, I don’t think I would have completed my expedition. The awards celebration was a great day to celebrate the completion of the award and to hear from different guest speakers.”
— Rebecca

"It was a great privilege to be invited to attend the Gold award celebration in Buckingham Palace Gardens. I had a really lovely day with family and friends made through the scheme, who I’m so glad I met. A favourite moment was listening to a talk from John Simpson, BBC news correspondent, as he shared hilarious stories and motivational insights from his long career in journalism. Thank you to everyone who supported me on my journey to achieving my Gold DofE."
— Laura

"DofE has contributed to the person I am today, I have grown and developed so much through completing my Bronze, Silver and Gold awards. But it wouldn’t have been possible without the support from everyone, I have truly learnt so much from them and have made some friends for life. The celebration was such a lovely morning filled with tea, cake, inspirational speakers and I even got to have a brief chat with the Duke of Edinburgh himself. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience."
— Courtney

Congratulations Courtney, Rebecca and Laura, we hope you enjoyed this special occasion! Thank you to the Girlguiding volunteers who dedicate their time and skills to support girls and young women to achieve DofE awards at all levels.

About the Duke of Edinburgh Awards

Every year, the DofE inspires hundreds of thousands of young people – from all walks of life – to develop skills, resilience and self-belief. We help them take on their own challenges, follow their passions, make a difference to their communities and discover talents they never knew they had.

DofE is open to any young person aged 14-24. Each young person builds their own DofE programme – picking their own activities and choosing which cause to volunteer for – in order to achieve a Bronze, Silver or Gold DofE Award.

Find out more about the DofE here.

About the Duke of Edinburgh Awards

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