During the last few months there has been some discussion concerning the roles of Supervisor and Assessor for young people’s Duke of Edinburgh award practice and qualifying expeditions.  I would just like to clarify the Duke of Edinburgh rules, which must be adhered to, except in special circumstances which will require to be agreed in advance of any expedition.  Apologies to those of you who are already aware of all of this, I have sent this out to everyone involved with DofE to ensure we do not miss anyone out of our communication!

Expedition Supervisors

All expeditions, including practice expeditions, must be supervised by a suitably experienced adult who is competent in the chosen mode of travel.  Additionally supervisors should be familiar with the team, their individual abilities and their knowledge of the chosen route.  It is also essential that the Supervisor has an understanding of the aims, principles and requirements of the Expedition section – information on this is available from the DofE Leaders Handbook (6^th Edition) which is available from SHQ for £5 including postage & packing, or from the Duke of Edinburgh Award website www.dofe.org

 The supervisor accepts responsibility for the safety and welfare of the team and during the practice must be satisfied that the participants are capable of undertaking the planned expedition.  This is important as the Qualifying Expedition for all levels of the Award (Bronze, Silver & Gold) is unaccompanied (it is not permitted for supervisors or other leaders to accompany the group). Whilst the qualifying expeditions are unaccompanied and supervised remotely, Supervisors must always be able to deal with team emergencies.

In wild country, coastal and remote areas of marshland, the Supervisor must be based in the area where the expedition takes place, however not walking along with the team.

For expeditions on water, horseback, and cycling please see the handbook or website for more details on how these should be supervised.

Supervisors may supervise teams more closely for short periods of an expedition when travelling through dangerous environments, however this should be kept to an absolute minimum and used only to allow the team to overcome an unavoidable dangerous area of their route.

For the vast majority, if the team does not have the necessary training and skills to operate safely in an area unaccompanied for the duration of the expedition then they should not be in that environment.

Supervisors should carry all the relevant safety information including names, addresses and contact numbers for participants, the assessor, your District Commissioner and the DofE Head Office emergency number 

Expedition Assessors

All qualifying expeditions must be assessed by a competent adult who is approved by SHQ and accredited by The Duke of Edinburgh Award. (If you currently are an assessor for DofE and have not already applied for accreditation please contact me as soon as possible).

The role of the assessor is to:

·         Ensure that the aim of the expedition is met

·         Ensure that the 20 conditions of the Expedition Section are fulfilled – these are attached for your reference.

·         Assist with the safety of the participants, by advising them on their route, equipment etc.  (please note the health & safety of the team rests entirely with the Supervisor)

·         Protect the interests of the Duke of Edinburgh

Please note that at Bronze and Silver level, assessors should not have been involved in any training or instruction of the team.  At Gold level, the assessor must be independent of your DofE group and not associated with the team in any way.  (This is where partnerships from unit to unit, or across districts can come into play, or alternatively you can use an assessor from the Wild Country Expedition Area Panel, however there is a small cost involved with this.)

Kind regards

Fiona