To be frustrated by DofE requirements

[Frenchcremefraiche]

My daughter has just turned 15 and is trying to complete (well, START tbh!) her Bronze DofE.

On paper it's fine: learn something and do some volunteering.

In reality it's really, really hard! All suggestions appreciated!

There are so many exclusions to the skill requirement. She doesnt get home from school until 6 which limits evenings. Not that there are many lessons/groups after school anyway. Then there are so few activities that count as a skill on the weekend. Anything vaguely "sporty" doesnt count as a skill even if it's something she's never done before and is going to classes to learn it (eg ice skating). She's been doing online guitar lessons but because she started those before DofE, they dont count. There is a minimum hours requirement and Ive found a few in person classes but they arent long enough. It needs to be something in person because it needs to be signed off so teaching herself or doing something at home wont count.

Then volunteering, because of her age, very few places can help. Any informal groups that are willing to take her want a parent present because they cant take responsibility for her / arent DBS checked etc which I get but obviously she doesnt want me hanging about. It has to be a regular thing so she cant organise eg an afternoon litter pick. Plus she needs someone to sign it off anyway. She looked at helping at a local beaver/scout group but one said no and the other has her ex boyfriend helping so she said no. In her naive 15year old way she wont help at brownies because they are "sexist".

Any suggestions on what she can do? She's on the verge of having to quit because she cant meet the requirements.

I haven't read the full thread but my local parkrun always has lots of volunteers

@ByKindOpalPoet
Mine have both done baking for their skill.
You don't need someone to cook 'for', more someone to deliver a slice of cake to each week. We got the mary berry 'fast cakes' book and they started at recipe 1.
The default volunteering here is litter picking - school grounds or local area. Keep a record of the volume collected and ask someone (anyone - scout leader? Friends parent? Local councillor?) to sign it off.
Some charity shops will accept under 16s, but not many.
Do you have any other kids groups nearby she could help at? Gymnastics for example?
If she's saying no to everything id leave her to it - brownies/cubs is an easy option. She's silly saying no.

Can she do something at school for the volunteering part? Litter picking at lunchtime, something in the library etc? My son's school offered this to the kids doing their DofE.

DS was already taking trampolining classes when he started and was allowed to learn a new skill as part of his bronze award, he just needed the instructor to sign it off.

Has she looked at the online options that DofE offer?

My youngest is doing dofe And is yet to find a skill … but is doing alter serving at mass each week as volunteering

What? She’s at school from 9 to 5.30? How’s she supposed to fit D of E in? Poor thing must be exhausted by the time she gets home.

My daughter helped out in school with lunchtime clubs for her bronze volunteering…. Could she do something like that once a week. Or some mentoring for the younger years like reading support or maths?

You can do sports and skills you started before registering, you just have to show improvement.

I used to volunteer with a homeless charity and we had students who would bake for us at home and drop the goodies off for the homeless to take away with them

My son is autistic and hated the idea of volunteering in person, however, he ticked this box thanks to the Red Cross. They run an online programme, where they learn about the work of the Red Cross etc. He then got together lots of charity donations from our neighbourhood and we donated these. It all gets marked remotely by the Red Cross and was so easy to do. For his skill, he did art. We were lucky that his art teacher marked this work - he wanted to improve his portrait skills so did a new drawing/painting each week. If you go on the DoFE site, there are lots of recommendations! Good luck.

I know a child who did an online Sign Language course, one who did a money management one, someone who volunteered helping a coach at a local sports club for an hour a week. Anything like that?

I had DofE volunteers when I worked in a charity shop. It was a nightmare. They did SFA but were there like puppies to get signed off. Store manager stopped accepting them in the end. There doesn't seem to be anything they're 'allowed ' to do so a waste of everyone's time.

OP, I don't know why she is saying it all needs to be in person. It doesn't at all. If you look on the DofE website you can select loads of online courses with online assessors who submit all the reports and give you a certificate. All she needs to do is photograph what she is doing.

My son did cooking for his bronze (I think the course was UBee or something similar) and making homemade dog treats for his silver. Both accepted courses no problem.

For volunteering he helped out at a junior football team for bronze & cleaning animal pens out at a local petting farm for silver. For the farm he also didn't do weekly as by the time he would have started it would have been time to finish. So they asked him if he could do 2 hours every other Sunday morning. Ideal for us!

As long as they are doing the correct amount of hours added up, it shouldn't matter.

My DD2 is 16 in yr12 and just starting gold. For her bronze skill she did a very good online British Sign Language course. All pre recorded sessions so no 'live participation' needed and she did it as and when she had time. Lots of mini assessments and the scores were recorded. At the end of the course, someone from the company signed it off with DofE and included her scores as part of his assessor feedback.

It was brilliant and very cheap - suggested donation was £10 I think.

Is there not a lunchtime club at school she can volunteer at? Or helping in the school library? Or is there not a skill based club at lunchtime she can join? My daughter’s skill is an existing out of school class and her volunteering she was already doing with Girl Guiding. However, she could also have used her school lunchtime activities.

My DH is a DofE leader and I have quizzed him! He has said that online guitar lessons should count as long as the assessor forms could be filled in by the teacher. He says she needs to ask her DofE leader if she’s having issues as they should be supporting her. There is skill, volunteering and physical. 1 has to be over 6 months and 2 are over 3 months. You can choose which one has whichever allotted time. It’s one hour a week, but they can be ‘bunched together’ ie 2 hours every two weeks, 4 hours every 4 weeks as long as you are doing it over the allotted time. She can use something she is already doing as long as she shows good progression from the DofE registration date to the end of the period of time.
My eldest did tabletop gaming as his skill for his bronze and volunteering at scouts as he’s an explorer scout. Could she join a weekend chess club, or a board game club Volunteering for silver was being a DofE young leader. Skills was an online course he did. Check out idea dot org dot uk Both his physicals have been a sport he was already doing, but was able to show good progression, and his teachers filled out the online forms.
As an aside, if she really wants to to do it, she has until she’s 24 to finish her bronze, though the cut off age is 25 to get gold if she wanted to them all. She doesn’t have to complete it within the academic year, though if it’s school facilitating they may be difficult, but she can transfer centres.

Yabu. Volunteer for cubs, brownies, work in charity shop on a Saturday. Got two children in the family who don't this and not back until 6 too. In fact one enjoyed the charity shop so much they continuing it .

Another vote for parkrun. They can also run/walk as their activity. A lot of parents I know got into parkrun themselves as a result of their dc doing parkrun for DofE.

Might also be worth contacting your local WI to get someone to mentor craft/baking

"...Any suggestions on what she can do? She's on the verge of having to quit because she cant meet the requirements."

Hi @Frenchcremefraiche I've looked at your posts, but only skimmed the rest, so apologies if these ideas have already been suggested.

Is there anything in school your DD could do as a volunteer - buddy, mentor, befriender, peer support etc? Or is there a particular teacher she connects with who could support her to volunteer in school?

Can you find info /contact details for the local voluntary organisation / CVO etc for her to contact, or is their a national (or local) database for volunteering? Potentially all sorts - after school clubs / youth clubs, young carers, peer mentoring, intergenerational volunteering, youth councils or similar...

Also, are there events or festivals that may have opportunities?

Just a quick brain dump, but hope I've not wasted your time.

Edited to add - in some parts of the UK there's a big push for Holiday Food and Fun activities - some delivered by the local authority and some by local charities etc - so there may be opportunities in the school holidays.

She doesn’t get home until 6?! How far away is the school?!

For volunteering look at Park Run - especially Junior Park Run. You need to turn up every weekend and help set up, marshal and then tidy up at the end. A friend's daughter did this for her volunteering.

This must be the school putting that conditionality on the skill as DofE would definitely permit it.

This must also be the school putting this criteria on as the screen shot sign offs are definitely permitted by DofE.

My son did litter-picking with local group.
helped grandad with gardening at his allotment.

https://www.threepeascookery.com/dofecourses?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22534898584&gbraid=0AAAAA970pwOGGQiNhiapXgoSYQ92UN4LM&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIqI-LhP2qkAMVY5RQBh0XzR4qEAAYASAAEgKpH_D_BwE This counts for the skill d of e .

My son did an online cookery course where they gave weekly ingredients/instructions/videos and sign it all off at end. threepeascookery.co.uk I think it was. We had to pay £40 but it was worth it. I also enjoyed not cooking one night a week!