The Duke of Edinburgh meets Joe

On Saturday I travelled to Goole to take part in training as a Duke of Edinburgh's Award Leader.  There were youth-workers, teachers, instructors and prison officers from all over the Yorkshire and Humberside region in attendance.  I was there with colleagues from Creative International Adventures for whom I start work in March.

One of the training activities involved inventing a young person; drawing a pen portrait of their likes and dislikes, interests and background then considering the barriers they may face and a programme which may suit them.  Interesting to note how my younger collegues heaped problem after problem onto poor Joe Bloggs. Merciless!

It was impressive to hear how prison officers from HMP Doncaster aimed to introduce the award to young prisoners in their care; how they balanced the need for punishment with the prospect of rehabilitation.

Any how, here's my certificate. I'm now an accredited DofE Leader and I'm really looking forward to helping young people gain their award.