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.

She could cook for you. Like the PP said, she cooks, takes photo, family friend (ideally with some vague link to cooking) signs it off.

My DDs both started D of E, one finished but never claimed her certificate, the youngest was thwarted by the lockdown.
I don’t see any way in which their lives have been blighted by this.

Is she doing this through school? I think they may be making up rules!

I'm trying to remember what I did for them (did bronze and part of gold). For one, I did cookery lessons as the skill. I helped at the local Rainbows for the bronze volunteering, and on a day ward for gold (sitting with older people, making cups of tea etc).
The trick is to count things you are already doing where possible, so your daughter could count the guitar. If she is at school so long, does she do any clubs at school that could count? If not, basically something she is interested in, cake decorating or learning a language (maybe one with a different alphabet).

If she already goes to Explorers, she can train as a Young Leader. Then help out with Squirrels, beavers, cubs.

Haven’t read the full thread sorry. My DS is doing his silver DofE and it doesn’t seem too onerous to be honest. Does your DD do any after school activities? I presume she does as she gets home at 6-could she volunteer at any of these? My DS helps out at the after school rugby for S3s (Scotland) once a week and that’s his volunteering done.
He has taken up photography with some friends and one of his teachers is guiding them through this. Quite an easy skill to improve on.

Do you have any local charity shops or ‘drop in centres’ that she might volunteer at? My granddaughter volunteers at a local food bank place (it’s run by a national charity).

DS volunteered at junior park run and learned sign language online. One of his teachers signed it off

Our faith community regularly has D of E volunteers help with the children. They can’t count toward ratios but they are still good and the adult are all DBS checked etc already so it’s not a problem to have a teen come.
Another option might be volunteer dog walking for someone who is unwell or older or just had a baby.

For skill, I’d just use the guitar.

She needs to offer to do anything they want at the library not just read stories!! Surely within the school day she can volunteer if she explains she doesnt have a parent who can drive her anywhere to do any volunteering. There must be a lunchtime club she can help with. We had kids help tidy the school library each week as well as all sorts of clubs with younger kids, not just sporting clubs. Has she actually told school? The DofE organiser will be helpful.

Duolingo or touch typing course are very easy skills to do at home and easily proven. Duolingo cant be language she does at school but otherwise can be any language.

There's lots of very sensible, practical ideas here OP but you seem to be meeting them all with an obstacle. I'm sure some of the suggestions given would be possible?

That’s not right. She needs evidence she’s learnt a skill (eg photos or Duolingo records) but it just gets signed off at the end. No need to be supervised each session.

The rules you’re stating don’t seem consistent with the ones we’ve heard of. Is she doing it through school? Could she do it through scouts instead?

Can she volunteer for elderly grandparents e.g put their shopping away? My daughter does that for her grandfather. For skills, what about learning BSL sign language from YouTube? You could sign off in it to prove she's been doing it.

My daughter volunteered at a cat rescue - cleaning pens etc. (also for kitten cuddles). She loved it and only gave it up in the end when she got a weekend job. I am sure it helped her get that job as it showed she wasn’t afraid of what be considered nasty tasks and that she had been reliable for about 18 months at that point.

A friend’s daughter walked greyhounds at the local rescue for her volunteering - is there one near you?

It is possible, we have had several DoE students help with our Rainbows unit.
However, we do have a waiting list as many young people are really keen to help.

Or if she wants to do scouting then there are loads of units beavers/cubs. In our little village alone there are 2 Beavers units, 2 cubs units. In the next slightly larger village there are 3 Beavers and 4 cubs. If she is trying to avoid her ex she can just do it in a different area.

How about a homeless project, a playscheme for children with disabilities such as Mencap.

Tbh it sounds like she only wants to do the volunteering to get her DoE as a tickbox exercise, and that may come across to organisations as quite negative

Guitar lessons are the skill.

She has got options for the volunteering and is deciding she isn't interested enough to make them work. Leave it to her to try to organise something.

We have run into similar obstacles with charity shops etc.

DD and 3 of her mates are doing a regular weekly litter pick around the villages. I contacted the local parish council and set it up through them. They will sign off.

She is cooking one meal a week at home and my friend/family friend will sign it off.

She is a gymnast and has set herself some new skills and her coach will sign it off.

Have you tried all the local charity shops? Some do accept 15yo volunteers, for example Oxfam, Barnardos, Red Cross. Many of the national ones will list their minimum age on their website so you can easily check. Some don't specify and you would have to ask.

Has she had a chat with the DoE coordinator at her school to see if they have any ideas or connections for volunteering?

Park Run or Junior Park Run are desperate for volunteers, especially over the winter.

My boys did online typing courses during Covid as their skill. We paid for a course and they had to login and it recorded their times and activities. Just printed that out at the end and DofE supervisor at school signed it off. Unbelievably useful skill for university to be able to touch type at really high speeds

She doesnt need to cook for non family! She cooks for family takes a photo each week of the food and maybe the recipe and you could take some photos of her cooking for more evidence if you are concerned. Before she starts she asks her school cookery teacher to sign it off and then takes her all the photos and maybe a slice of cake. Everyone is offering you suggestions.

The only thing she has ruled out is Brownies and Scouts. Admittedly both are for childish reasons but she is a child so...

Most of the cubs and beaver groups all start too early for her to physically get there. There are 4 she could do. 2 work closely together (with her ex), the 3rd said no and the person who runs the 4th is an absolutely awful human being who has had numerous complaints made against him but somehow is still in position.

We dont have a StJohns Ambulance group she can attend.

She has been actively trying to find things but keeps being told no either by the people she's asking or by the people running DofE.

Her school dont do music. There is a waiting list for official lessons. Her online guitar classes dont count.