I wasn't an exemplar kid in school. I didn't enjoy the nature that school brought - dry environment sat inside listening to teachers who made no attempt to get to know you or understand what you were going through outside school. That all changed when I started DofE. It brought with it not just the obvious outdoor pursuits through expeditions and training for those, but through the friendships and it supplied some great and relatable role models. It changed my patterns of behaviour and put me back on a right path. It was great for developing not only outdoor skills, communicating, map reading, expedition skills such as putting up tents and finding water etc, but the communication skills, team building, finding shared purposes.

Although I finished my Duke of Ed only recently having put off the paperwork for ages, it has inspired me to go back into the world of education to become a teacher and to inspire others to get into the DofE scheme as I hope they find as much enjoyment and learning through it as I did.