‘It changed my life’

The DofE scheme and I

Jack Bayley, 20, from Manchester: Jack is in his first year of a sports coaching degree at Manchester Metropolitan University, and is on track to become a PE teacher. Before he took part in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, though, he said: “I was that average naughty kid, always in trouble.” However, when his teachers at New Bridge School in Oldham persuaded him to take part in the scheme, aged 14, it changed his life. He completed a camping expedition in Bakewell in the Peak District, as well as voluntary coaching at a wheelchair football club. He persevered and completed his Bronze, Silver and Gold levels. “It gave me a path to try to achieve something and feel good about myself,” he said.

Emma Sammes, 30, from London: Emma, who grew up on an estate in Acton, lost her brother when she was 13. “My life went downhill from there,” she said. “I was excluded from three schools.” She left school with no qualifications. Just four years later, aged 17, she lost her dad. However, this was the “wakeup call” she needed to turn her life around – and she credits the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award with making that possible. “The Award took me out of my comfort zone and showed me I just needed to rebuild my confidence,” Emma said. She completed her Gold Award, trekking 60 miles in just two days on an expedition in Gambia. The single mother is now a youth worker, carer and nanny.