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PRINCE PHILIP’S GREATEST LEGACY
Open to all backgrounds, cultures and abilities, the D of E Award raises young people’s aspirations and resilience. No other programme offers the same range of experiences and opportunities. Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh, was born in 1921 and died this year at the age of 99. He married Queen Elizabeth II in 1947 and during his 65 years of public life, Prince Philip undertook 22,219 solo engagements, gave 5,496 speeches and wrote 14 books but his greatest legacy is the establishment of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. Prince Philip was one of the first pupils to attend Gordonstoun School. Established in 1934, the School offered the Prince a stability and security previously unknown to him following a largely nomadic and lonely childhood. The School was founded by German educationalist Kurt Hahn who later became a personal friend to the Prince and it was at Hahn’s suggestion that the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award was established in 1955. The award was intended to bridge the gap for young men in the post-war era leaving formal education at 15 and entering into National Service at 18. The award aimed to encourage these men into making the best use of their
free time, to find interests and develop new skills as well as a sense of purpose and selfconfidence that would support them into their future and help them become well rounded citizens. Led by Sir John Hunt (later Lord Hunt) the Award had four sections; Rescue and Public Service, Expeditions, Pursuits and Projects and Fitness and proved so successful that by the second year of its existence the project was rolled out to girls and overseas. Over the past 66 years more than eight million people have completed their D of E and almost half a million youngsters in over 130 countries and territories are currently enrolled at either bronze, silver or gold level. The Duke was a lifelong advocate for young people, believing in each individual’s potential and the transformational impact of the Duke of Edinburgh Award on thousands of people across the world will be his everlasting legacy. In 2020, over 330,000 young people continued with their D of E activities, a huge force for good dedicating 1.8million
“It’s what I like to describe as a do-ityourself growing up kit.”
RIP His Royal Highness Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh hours of volunteering from sewing PPE at their kitchen tables to delivering food parcels to those who needed them most. The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award has always been extremely popular at NHSG with a large percentage of the Year Groups taking part. As School D of E Co-ordinator and Silver Award Leader I have the pleasure to work alongside Mrs Laura Hall (Gold Award Leader) and Mrs Nina Cameron (Bronze Award Leader) who are amazing in
