Skills

Why this is part of the Award

This section is designed to encourage the discovery and development of practical and social skills and personal interests.

What do I have to do?

The first stage is to identify the type of service you might be able to do and check with your group leader to make sure it is one of the approved Skills Programmes. This is important as some activities might be listed under Volunteering or Physical and not Skills.

Then maintain an interest in the activity over a period, improve your skills and gain a deeper knowledge of the subject. Start with an initial briefing with an appropriate instructor. You can then set yourself goals and monitor your progress during the activity, and see how much you have improved by your final review.

What do I get out of it?

You can develop an existing interest try out something completely new. Whatever you do, this is a chance for you to develop your skills alongside enthusiastic people. You may just discover talents that you did not know you had.

Some examples of Skills

There are over 200 to choose from including:

• Agriculture - learn the practical skills of caring for animals or raising crops.
• Billiards, Snooker and Pool - Attend a regular coaching session and take part in competitions.
• Cake Decoration - learn the art of decorating different types of cakes.
• Chess - join a club and record your scores
• Film and Video making - join a group, or work with friends, to make a film
• Information Technology - understand the use of computers and how they work.
• Languages - learn the basics of a foreign language
• Singing - improve your technique and music reading ability.

For more information on activities qualifying as Skills, see the Skills section of the Duke of Edinburgh Award website.