I stumbled into D of E when I showed my art teacher some of my drawings aged about 14 or 15. She recommended I put my skills to use by doing D of E, but I knew nothing about it. Since some of my friends had already started attending sessions, I went along with them. I had no idea about the physical aspects of it so I was fairly unprepared for the Bronze expedition. I’m not an outward-bound person at all, but I’m so grateful that I did all three awards with my school friends. I found it very challenging— especially the Gold practice walk and expedition— but I always look back on that as a reminder of what I am capable of. I came close to quitting after the Gold practice walk, but, after talking to an assessor, I discovered that I just needed to change something in my preparations, both physically and psychologically, to be able to do the real thing. In the end, my team had some very tough experiences on that expedition due to terrible weather and getting badly lost. If I hadn’t had that conversation with the assessor and done extra preparation, I know I wouldn’t have got to the end. I reached a very low point on the day we were lost, but when another assessor offered to let me drop out, I knew I’d come too far (in many ways) to throw it all away. When things have got tough in my career, I’ve often thought back to my Gold expedition and everything leading up to it to remind me that I can get through hard times and be successful.

Going to Saint James’ Palace to be presented with our Gold award was such a wonderful day. HRH Prince Philip gave each group his full attention for a few moments. There were so many of us to see, but he made sure he listened to each group and heard some of our stories. It’s a very special memory.

The Duke of Edinburgh has left behind such an important and influential legacy in the D of E award and I hope lots of young people will participate for many years to come.