Based in Corsham, Wiltshire, the South West Regional Office supports DofE Licensed Organisations in Gloucestershire, South Gloucestershire, Bristol, BANES, Wiltshire, Somerset, North Somerset, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall.
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SW News
Plymouth DofE Celebrate...
Two dozen young people enjoyed completing their hard earned Bronze, Silver and Gold Duke of Edinburgh's (DofE) Awards at a friendly and informal Celebration Night held recently in the city. All of the participants had taken part in their DofE through Open Award Centres run by Plymouth Youth Services with dedicated volunteers and staff. Nigel Norris MBE congratulated all the youngsters as they received their certificates.
65 Supporters and participants attended the event and enjoyed watching some of the hilarious self sufficiency team challenges unfold as well as listening to volunteer Laura Millroy tell of her recent adventures through her DofE over the last seven years. Laura will be receiving her Gold Award at St James Palace later this year.
New Waste Access Agreement, Cornwood. Grid Reference SX 6252 6116
In 1999, the Dartmoor National Park Authority entered into an access agreement at New Waste, Cornwood for car-parking and access on foot/horseback to enable access onto common land at Stalldown Barrow. The land at New Waste was subsequently mapped as open country under the CROW Act 2000 and the Access Agreement was amended to provide permissive access for parking and horse riding (reflecting the change in the new right of access).
The land at New Waste has since changed hands and the new owner has given notice to the Authority to terminate the Agreement on 24 June 2014. Despite discussions with the landowner’s agent, it appears that the new owner is not persuaded to maintain permissive access for parking etc.
This means that the public will no longer be able to park cars or ride horses through the land at New Waste from late June. Access will still be available on foot under CROW access rights.
New Waste is a popular and well used access point onto the moor ,both by the public, D of E groups, schools etc and the removal of access for parking in particular is likely to cause concern to residents and visitors. The road network leading to New Waste is narrow with nowhere to park easily and users could be faced with up to a 2.5km walk in from Cornwood.
Andrea Roberts is the sector ranger and has posted notices on site to inform the public that the Agreement will be ending in June.
Dartmoor Appreciation Society - Moor Boots Scheme
Thanks to a generous fund that has recently been set up by the Dartmoor Preservation Association, eight DofE participants from Westlands School, Torquay now have a brand new pair of walking boots.
James Paxman, Chief Executive of the DPA said "We are delighted to be able to help these youngsters. The pleasures and challenges of expeditioning are not always easy but we hope that at least they will have dry feet! We also hope their expedition experiences will give them the Dartmoor 'bug' and provide many lasting memories."
The DPA's Moor Boots scheme is in its initial year and aims to help local youngsters who would like to take part in Duke of Edinburgh Award expeditions but are struggling to afford the necessary equipment. DofE Manager Lucy Atkins and Leader Fiona Darby have been working closely with James Paxman from the DPA to set up the fund. The eight Bronze, Silver and Gold participants and the two staff travelled to Cotswold Outdoor at Dart’s Farm, Exeter where they were assisted by Haydn Wallis (Store Manager), Chris Malin (Assistant Manager) and John Cousens. The service the staff provided was excellent and participants benefitted from discounts on their boots by using their DofE Reward Cards. Each participant found the Cotswold boot-fitting service very useful and received detailed advice about their new kit. Lucy Atkins said: “We are aware that sometimes kit can be a barrier to participating in expeditions. This generous scheme has allowed more young people to enjoy the experience of expedition.”
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DofE Leaders from Torbay network complete night nav challenge
On a cold Saturday evening in January, six DofE Leaders from across various DLCs in Torbay, Devon met at an agreed rendezvous point up on Dartmoor. The idea for the first ‘Night Nav Off’ challenge had been conceived at a late 2013 social occasion, and after some early bravado, there were now a few nerves. Amongst the navigators were some recently (and not so recently) gained outdoor qualifications. It had all got a bit serious, with some kind Dartmoor Search & Rescue Ashburton team members giving their time to set a course, and track our teams in the name of independent adjudication - amazing, as these lovely folk are all volunteers in their rescue work, and on duty 24 hrs a day.
http://dsrtashburton.org.uk
Two teams of three Leaders (each team with a complementary canine) headed off as dimpsy turned to dark, being given just an 8 figure grid reference for each target point, and armed only with map, compass and pen - no digital assistance allowed bar a watch for timing. The adjudicators tracked closely, and were able to report that both teams made all their checkpoints accurately (digital assistance allowed for them!). The most interesting point was a 10 cm high metal cross fixed to the top of a boulder - and not marked on the OS map! Back indoors the winners were announced, and a hot meal gladly devoured.
The challenge was initially set in the name of fun and ‘Team Torbay’ bonding. However it was agreed that the other important reason is of course that those responsible for taking teams out into wild country need to be confident should the need arise to go out in the dark or very poor visibility that Dartmoor so often gives us You’re only as good as the last time you practised. For that reason alone a date will soon be set for Night Nav Off 2015 - watch this space - or why not organise your own?
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