The Young Leaders Award at St. Julian's School

How it all began

The Award Programme was first introduced in the United Kingdom in 1956 as The Duke of Edinburgh's Award. The aim was to motivate boys and girls between 14 and 25 to become involved in a balanced programme of voluntary, self-development activities. The Programme was designed with great care by a small team, led by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh; Dr Kurt Hahn, a German educationalist and founder of Outward Bound and the United World Colleges; and Sir John (later Lord) Hunt, the leader of the first team to conquer Mount Everest.

The Programme has developed and grown and now reaches young people in over 100 countries. Internationally, the Award operates under the same principles but under a number of different titles; for example, The Duke of Edinburgh's Award; The International Award for Young People; The President's Award. More specific national titles are also used, for example Prémio Infante D. Henrique here in Portugal.

Overall Time Requirements

As the Award is a programme of individual challenge, children are encouraged to work at their own pace. The Award is sometimes referred to as a marathon, not a sprint. They can take as long as they need provided they complete the Award before your 25th birthday.

In the Skills, Physical Recreation and Service Sections, they are required to participate regularly in their chosen activity. There is no absolute rule as to what is considered regular participation, as the amount of time dedicated to an activity will depend on many things, including the activity itself and their own circumstances. However, a rough "rule-of-thumb" is that on average they should be spending at least one hour per week on their chosen activity. The Award cannot be achieved in a shorter time span by working more intensely.

Ideas for activities in each area include:

Skill: Which could be anything to do with cookery, art, photography, stamp collecting, learning a language.

Service to the community: Teaching someone to learn an instrument, to sing, teach a language, helping others read and write, help in a home for the disabled or physically or mentally challenged.

Sport: Basketball, Football, Volleyball, Tennis, Badminton, Surfing, Dancing, Gymnastics, Rugby, Hockey.