Volunteers - guidance for group leaders

The work of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award wouldn't be possible without the dedication and support of thousands of volunteers. While the Award must do all that we can to encourage volunteers, it must also adopt procedures to ensure that participants are protected.

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award has a series of policies about its intentions, organisation and arrangements for volunteers specifically including volunteer recruitment, support, development and management. There is more information on the Volunteer page of the Award website.

All volunteers with groups must be registered with the Operating Authority. The registration should be reviewed periodically and the Authority informed of any changes. The form is available from the resource box below.

The Herefordshire Operating Authority has list of approved volunteers who can help with specific tasks or expeditions. Please contact the Development Officer on 01432 383027 or dofeaward@herefordshire.gov.uk for more information.

Any leader, assistant or volunteer with regular, significant or unsupervised contact with young people must have a police CRB check. For volunteers this is free, see the CRB website or email dofeaward@herefordshire.gov.uk for more information.