I was fortunate to attend a school that was well set up for doing the Duke of Edinburgh's Award. But because they were so well set up, they made the expeditions particularly challenging for us! Having never been an outdoors type of person before, hiking and camping were a complete revelation to me, and also a liberation. As a teenage girl I struggled to be in the 'in crowd,' I didn't have fashionable clothes, was rubbish at makeup and never listened to the 'right kind' of music, but none of this mattered on a DofE expedition.

I discovered a new side to myself, and to my fellow students at school. It made the difference between me hating my teenage years at school, and loving them. It also helped me to realise just how great you feel when you have achieved something you thought wasn't possible, and just how much is possible if you put your mind to it. It also helped me to realise that we all benefit from helping each other out.

My DofE expeditions instilled in me an insatiable sense of adventure, that led me to go on to do expeditions in Papua New Guinea and Guyana, and to a career in humanitarian aid an international development. And to ensuring that I always have a pair of comfortable walking boots, a good waterproof jacket, and a bar of Kendle mint cake available, just incase there's an opportunity to go out for a walk or small adventure!