This is the pinnacle of the Duke of Edinburgh award. The Gold award cannot be undertaken until you reach the age of 16, but newcomers to the scheme can access it. However, it is advisable to have your Bronze and Silver awards, as this is a large commitment and having these will mean that you have gained an excellent understanding of the scheme and had a chance to try a shorter programme to see whether you will actually enjoy it.
Like all the other programmes there is a common four part project forming part of all three awards, and for the final challenge, just in the Gold award, there is a fifth and new challenge awaiting you on completion of the other four. Firstly your volunteering challenge, well this time is has doubled from 6 to 12 months, then the skills and physical, you can decide but you must to one for 6 months and one for 12 months to pass. If you are new to the Duke of Edinburgh scheme and didn’t do Bronze or Silver first then you will need to add a further 6 months to either of your 12 month tasks. Then it’s time for your expedition. This time you’re looking at a 4 day 3 night adventure.
Complete all that and you can then embark on the final and exciting new challenge of the residential; your chance to stay for 5 days and 4 nights with lots of new people – Enjoy!