Expedition Provision

Zest for Adventure can offer a Duke of Edinburgh's Award Expedition Section programme at Bronze, Silver and Gold levels tailored to meet your requirements. However, the following is a typical walking expedition programme format:

Information Session

Purpose: explaining to participants and parents how the expedition programme operates

Timing: first half of autumn term, evening, ½ hour (typically combined with the school's launch evening)

Preparation Session

Purpose: reminding participants how the expedition programme operates, enabling participants to choose their expedition teams

Timing: second half of autumn term, lunchtime, ½ hour

Planning Session

Purpose: demonstrating expedition equipment and discussing options for obtaining it

Timing: first half of spring term, after-school, 1½ hours

Briefing Sessions (x 3)

Purpose: finalising arrangements for the expedition

Timing: the week before each expedition, lunchtime, ½ hour

Training Expedition

Format: skills training day and then an accompanied training walk: for all participants who have not successfully completed a DofE expedition programme previously

Duration: 2 days, 1 night (Bronze, Silver and Gold)

Timing: second half of spring term or first half of summer term

Location: The Chiltern Hills (Bronze, Silver and Gold)

Practice Expedition

Format: shadowed expedition

Duration: 1 day, 1 night (Bronze); 3 days, 3 nights (including accompanied training walk) (Silver); 4 days, 4 nights (including accompanied training walk) (Gold)

Timing: second half of summer term

Location: The Chiltern Hills (Bronze); The Cotswold Hills (Silver); The Brecon Beacons (Gold)

Qualifying Expedition

Format: remotely supervised and independently assessed expedition

Duration: 2 days, 1 night (Bronze); 3 days, 2 nights (Silver); 5 days, 4 nights (including accompanied acclimatisation day) (Gold)

Timing: first half of autumn term

Location: The Chiltern Hills (Bronze); The White Peak District (Silver); The Dark Peak District (Gold)

Presentation Session

Purpose: participants giving their presentations

Timing: the third week after the Qualifying Expedition, lunchtime or after-school (depending on number of teams)

Expedition Provision Prices

Exact prices will depend on the details of the programme that you would like us to provide, as well as on your location and on the staffing requirements of your local DofE Licensed Organisation. Full details will be provided on request, but typical prices per participant are as follows:

Bronze Expedition Programme 2019

All entrants (minimum charge of 7 participants): £200.00

All entrants (minimum of 56 participants): £180.00

Silver Expedition Programme 2019

New entrants (minimum charge of 7 participants): £350.00

Bronze award holders (minimum charge of 7 participants): £300.00

New entrants (minimum of 28 participants): £310.00

Bronze award holders (minimum of 28 participants): £260.00

Gold Expedition Programme 2019

New entrants (minimum charge of 7 participants): £500.00

Bronze award holders (minimum charge of 7 participants): £450.00

New entrants (minimum of 14 participants): £450.00

Bronze or Silver award holders (minimum of 14 participants): £400.00

VAT will be added to all prices at the applicable rate.

Safety

All trainers, supervisors and assessors are appropriately qualified in walking leadership and first aid. All assessors are all nationally accredited DofE Assessors. All expedition leaders have enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service clearance. They carry appropriate safety equipment with them at all times.

All expedition leaders are required to successfully complete our leader induction programme prior to the start of each expedition season. They are then regularly monitored throughout the season.

All participants are required to have successfully completed an accompanied training expedition before being allowed to undertake an unaccompanied expedition. Teams carry appropriate safety equipment with them at all times.

Zest for Adventure is regularly inspected by the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority and holds an Adventure Activities Licence for Trekking.

Zest for Adventure holds membership of Pharos Response, which provides us with comprehensive emergency response support in the event of a serious incident.

Zest for Adventure is insured with Activities Industry Mutual and holds £5,000,000 public liability insurance for mountain walking.

Quality

Zest for Adventure is regularly inspected by The Duke of Edinburgh's Award and is an Approved Activity Provider for the Expedition Section for Expeditions on Foot.

All our programmes are thoroughly reviewed prior to the start of each expedition season, and on an ongoing basis, to ensure that they continue to lead the way in Duke of Edinburgh's Award expedition provision.

We run a comprehensive leader training programme for our expedition leaders prior to the start of each expedition season.

Integrity

Zest for Adventure is a member of the Institute for Outdoor Learning and is committed to abide by its professional Code of Conduct.

Experience

Zest for Adventure has been successfully providing Duke of Edinburgh's Award expeditions since 2010.

All our expedition leaders are experienced and enthusiastic Duke of Edinburgh's Award expedition specialists.

Support

Our team provides the following support to schools:

Regular expedition communication with participants and parents (where required, at extra cost)
Liaising with school staff to arrange school expedition staffing (where required)
Production of all documentation and submission of expeditions on Evolve (or similar) and to the DofE (where required)
All expedition communication with school staff (where required)
Production of laminated route maps for teams and leaders for each expedition
Production of comprehensive team and leader packs for each expedition
Production of detailed assessor’s reports at the end of each expedition programme

Flexibility

Where participants are unable to attend all of their school's scheduled expeditions, we are able to transfer them over to our open expedition programme to complete their missing expeditions. Depending on circumstances, we offer them significantly reduced prices (often completely free of charge) in this case.

References

We are able to put you in contact with some of the DofE Managers of the schools we work for, if you would like to obtain references on us prior to committing to booking one of our expedition programmes.