I remember attending an open evening for the secondary school I was going to start at. One of the presentations was on DofE. I was really intrigued but worried I wouldn’t know anyone doing it When I turned up at the first meeting I saw a girl I recognised but had never been friends with. We got talking. She became my best friend and 20 years, countless expeditions, volunteering, 5 children and untold highs and lows later she is still my best friend. DofE brought us together. We went to Germany for our silver expedition, did a service section with the fire service, walked all over England and Wales, got lost constantly, were the last group back on every expedition. We sang, laughed and cried our way through every single one of those miles and learnt true resilience, friendship and strength.

I have so many wonderful memories for DofE; it has taught me so much and given me so much. But perhaps the most powerful thing for me is that I completed my silver award shortly before my grandad passed away. The last conversation I had with him was about my expedition and he was so proud of what I’d achieved.

I was incredibly fortunate to attend a school that valued DofE so highly and I’m so grateful to Dick Beaumont for all the work he did to establish and then run such a successful programme. It was thanks to him that I had the opportunities I did and thanks to the award scheme that my years at college were such happy ones.

But most of all my gratitude is to His Royal Highness for having the vision and foresight to create the award. Your legacy is in the millions of young people whose lives have been shaped by their participation in the DofE. Thank you Your Royal Highness.