The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award
The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award (the Award) is a Non-Formal Education and Learning framework supporting young people to find their purpose, place and passion in the world.
In more than 120 countries, our globally recognised accreditation is available to all 14 to 24-year-olds, inclusive of all backgrounds, locations, cultures and abilities.
Through the programme, each young person becomes part of something special while developing their individual interests, universal skills and life ambitions.
Founded in 1956, the Award highlights the value of Non-Formal Education and Learning. Today there are consistently over a million young people taking on the Award’s challenge to believe in the power of their potential, make a difference in their community and take control of their future.
The result? Entire generations of innovators and changemakers who are truly world-ready.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Foundation is an international charity supporting young people to find their purpose, place and passion in the world. We are the international charity that drives and supports the Award’s growth, access and impact across the globe.
It is our long term ambition that every eligible young person aged 14 – 24 will have the opportunity to participate in the Award.
For more than 60 years, the Award has been helping young people transform their lives and their communities. We empower young people to develop ‘soft’ – or universal – skills such as resilience, adaptability, creativity, problem solving, decision-making and communication. Developing these skills supports the achievement of long-term positive life outcomes, including educational attainment, employment and mental health and wellbeing. In other words, we help young people to achieve personal change in their lives, which itself can lead to positional change in their environments.
The Award framework can be a blueprint for investing in human capital; specifically strengthening resilience, improving employability and entrepreneurship, promoting prosperity and helping the most vulnerable. It has direct positive financial and non-financial impacts on the people and communities it touches, and in 2022 alone it had a global social value of £762 million.
Award participants can log into their ORB
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