insideKENT Magazine Issue 84 - March 2019 | Page 117

IN ASSOCIATION WITH
ASHFORD SCHOOL THE FIRST IN SOUTH EAST TO OFFER
DOFE GOLD AWARD TO STAFF
Ashford School, a Kent-based co-educational day
and boarding school for children aged 3 months –
18 years, is the fir st school in the South East of
England to announce that they will be offering staff
aged 23 1/2 and under the opportunity to participate
in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Gold Award at no cost
to the participant. As part of the school’s adventurous
learning ethos, the decision was announced with the
aim to further embed the DofE Award into the life
of the sc hool and encourage staf f to contin ue to
drive their professional development.
“We encourage our students to challenge themselves
every day in school, so by doing the same with our
teachers and staff, we will develop an even stronger
culture of adventure and confidence. The Duke of
Edinburgh’s Award scheme is a fantastic wa y of
doing e xactly tha t,” e xplains Mic hael Hall,
Headmaster of Ashford School.
Ashford School has been an operating authority of
the Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Award since 1965,
and in 1995 the school became a Licensed Centre
for the DofE Award. The programme, led
by parents, teachers and staff volunteers, currently
boasts 221 students w ho are completing or ha ve
recently received their award. It runs as part of the
co-curricular programme, which currently boasts
80 activities offered to the students.
The participants will travel to Snowdonia, Wales, to
take part in their practice and qualifying expeditions
in J une. T hey will also complete 12 months’
volunteering and 18 months of
skills and
physical sections as part of the award.
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