We wouldn’t be able to do what we do, if it wasn’t for volunteers. These individuals give up their time to support young people with their DofE because they want them to gain the skills they need to get ahead and develop into rounded, confident characters, ready to take on the world.
By running the DofE, teachers can make a real and lasting difference to the lives of their students. The DofE can also help transform relationships between students and teachers, inside and outside the classroom. By becoming a DofE volunteer, you can gain valuable leadership and management experience that can help your professional development and career progression.
Volunteering to support young people doing their DofE isn’t all about hiking and camping; there are many different roles for our adult volunteers, with time commitments being from as little as just an hour or so a month. To view the full list of volunteer opportunities for adults, please click here.
Get in touch with your colleague who manages the DofE at your school or talk to your headteacher about delivering DofE programmes.
To view the winner of our competition, where we asked participants to submit a short video telling us how their Leader has made a positive difference to their life, please click here.
If you’re already a DofE Manager or Leader and are looking for tools to help you recruit more volunteers for your centre, take a look at the selection below. There’s also the recruitment video, above, which you could share.
Promotional leaflet
Download a leaflet to help you recruit volunteers.
Promotional posters
Download a set of posters to help you recruit volunteers.
Email template
A simple email template for you to send to those interested in volunteering.
Social media post
A collection of posts to help you attract volunteers via social media.
“The DofE is such a central part of the extra-curricular programme at Windsor Girls’ School and it’s enabled me to build positive relationships with students, staff and parents. It has allowed me to develop my own communication and teamwork skills, which are vital in my role as a head of year.”
Charlotte Castle, DofE Manager, Windsor Girls’ School
“I have a level of trust in the DofE participants that goes beyond a normal classroom relationship, which is only achievable through shared experience.”
Simon Watchman, DofE Manager, Handsworth Grange Community Sports College
“I enjoy getting to work with the students in a very different environment from the normal classroom. You get to see the other interests of students and the things that they get involved in outside of school.”
Nicola Swann, DofE Manager, Heckmondwike Grammar School
“Having regular contact with students who I didn’t normally teach or see has helped me significantly in school. We have a shared interest and something in common, which makes our teacher-student relationship stronger.”
Kate Sherwin, DofE Administrator, Blatchington Mill School
“I wanted to get involved with the DofE because I knew it would be a great way for me to build on student/teacher relationships outside of the classroom, therefore enhancing both teacher and student experiences inside the classroom.”
Scott Rayson, DofE Manager, Sandwell Academy
“I really believe in ‘learning outside of the classroom’ and love giving students a chance to show what they can do in different environments. I also believe that giving students space to make mistakes (and correct them) is a rare opportunity these days.”
Juliane Spiers, DofE Manager, King Alfred’s Academy
