James Wood celebrates GOLD DofE success at St James’s Palace, London

Upper Sixth pupil, James Wood, attended a presentation at St. James’s Palace where he received his Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards from celebrity presenter, Alex Gregory MBE, after sharing his experiences with Trustee for The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE), HRH The Earl of Wessex.

Committing to his Gold DofE Award, James volunteered his services in supporting the elderly in a community home and helping to mentor younger pupils at College.  He improved his skills as a pianist and in first aid life skills, as well as his basketball and running skills to improve overall personal fitness. Along with a group of gold award students, he planned and undertook a challenging expedition and residential experience in a remote area of North India.

HRH The Earl of Wessex asked if James would do his DofE Gold again and James said: “My DofE journey has given me so many wonderful life long memories and helped me to be more confident and independent. However, it is a challenge and not for the light hearted”.  The adventurous journey was a high altitude trek through the Spiti Trans-Himalaya region of Himachal Pradesh, never dipping below 4000m and rising to 4900m. James said: “I completed a gruelling task to a successful level of competence and overcame a challenging trek in an extreme climate and terrain and managed the stresses and strain this has on my physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. The experience created a deep sense of awe and wonder daily - living so close to nature and the phenomenal scenes I woke up to every day. Trekking through this unique tapestry of colours and cultures made me feel that I had been transported to another world’.  During his residential James collaborated in the construction of a rammed-earth green house with a number of other teenagers as well as members of the local community. He was involved in all aspects of construction including: preparation of stone foundations and retaining walls, the formation of several hundred hand-made mud bricks, construction of rammed earth walls to a finished height of approximately 2.5m and the installation of the plastic sheet.  The challenging weather conditions of intense summer heat and strong winds were endured throughout the project. Over and above his daily labours, James was also tasked with completing daily duties such as meal preparation and camp and ablution maintenance and hygiene. “I felt the experience and challenge of building a greenhouse, working as a member of a team, for the people of Spiti - is a moment in my life that I will never forget. The sweat dripping of my face as I carried a 20kg bag of mud, 15m down a hill, hundreds of times in a day was extremely challenging and physically straining and tested my resilience and commitment to the limit”.  Another equally rewarding experience was regularly visiting a home for the elderly and James reflected that what he learned is that even the smallest of actions can mean so much to this vulnerable group of elderly in our communities. “I felt a deep sense of responsibility towards this group of people, not letting them down once you have made a commitment”.

Speaking about his DofE experience, James, said, “I feel incredibly proud of my achievements and I am delighted to have completed my Gold DofE here at Plymouth College. I felt I really tested and challenged myself in unfamiliar circumstances, demonstrating resilience and perseverance in a time restricted situation. I would highly recommend other students to seriously grasp the opportunity to undertake the DofE challenge.  It helps you to grow as a person, it develops your skills and opens up opportunities to try something outside of your comfort box. It is also looked upon highly favourably in university applications! Not every school offers the DofE so we are very fortunate here at Plymouth College to have such dedicated staff to give up their time and lead this award for us. I highly recommend the DofE Award as an experience and opportunity not to miss”.