Girls are Gold

March 21st 2016

A team of five Upper Sixth girls at Pipers Corner (Victoria H, Poppy N, Maddy S, Nia T and Charlotte W) are to be congratulated on the successful completion of their Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award. An even more special accomplishment as they are the first group to complete the Gold Award at Pipers Corner

For the Gold Award the girls were required to complete a series of activities over the course of a year. These included volunteering, a physical activity such as playing a new sport, a skill like learning a musical instrument, a four-day expedition and a residential, which was to undertake a shared activity in a residential setting away from home for five days. For this task the girls decided to spend the week at a Guiding camp.

For the expedition the girls travelled to The Lake District where they embarked on a tough journey. During the expedition the girls took time out to learn about Mountain Rescue techniques, talking to the Mountain Rescue team in Ambleside about their work and how different areas of the country cope with the demands on the service. This was part of their final section of the Award, where they had to choose an aim and present this to an audience. Their aim was to find out the differences between Mountain Rescue teams in the Lake District and North Wales.

Maddie S said “DofE was the most fulfilling but demanding experiences I have ever been part of, but every part of me would jump at the chance to do it again. During our gold expedition we were faced with extreme weather including 90 mile an hour winds, hail, frost and, surprisingly, sunburn too. We dived behind boulders, ate lunch in the hail and cooked breakfast while being bitten by midges, but it was all worth it. The expeditions themselves taught me about the effort and skill that goes into being part of a team, and also tested my physical and mental strength. My most demanding moment of the expedition was waking up in the morning, damp under the soaking canvas, knowing that the day would be filled with discomfort and soreness. However, that feeling disappeared throughout the day, as we laughed until our sides hurt, sang to keep our spirits high and trudged together up mountain after mountain, not because we had to, but because we wanted to! I would strongly recommend the programme to anyone who can take it. DofE has been part of my life for the past four years and I am very happy I took part in it. I am so proud of our achievement in completing the Award and also being the first group in the school to take part in the Gold Award Scheme.”