Last Friday and Saturday six groups of Year 10 students, thirty-five in all, successfully completed their Assessed Expedition for the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award.

As ever, they were supported by a number of staff in the field as well as a number of staff at school; covering for absent staff and acting as assessors in their other activities. Without mentioning names, the manager of another school, also out with students on those days, asked me if we had any staff helping. Apparently no staff will agree to help at his school and consequently they have to employ an Approved Activity Provider. Whilst we may move to some form of this model in the next few years we will continue to maintain an STRS staff presence, recognising the importance and assurance this provides for our students.

Just a bit of housekeeping follows as students return the borrowed equipment. The tents are all cleaned and dried. It is a measure of our students that, in at least two cases, I was only certain that the tents had been used because the fly sheets were wet!

All seventy three students have now successfully completed their Expeditions. They now need to be getting those other activities signed off and be preparing their material for their presentations on Tuesday 20^th September, 3.30-5.00pm.