STUDENTS from Tavistock College successfully completed their Duke of Edinburgh Award Expedition recently.

During the weekend, the group of sixteen young people were marked by an external assessor on various skills that they had developed during after-school training sessions and weekend practise expeditions.

These included first aid and emergency procedures; an awareness of risk and health and safety issues; navigation and route planning; preparatory and practical map skills; compass skills; camp-craft; equipment and hygiene; food and cooking and — possibly most importantly — team-building and co-operation skills, which enable the youngsters to work together as an effective and cohesive unit.

The teams left Belstone early on Saturday morning and headed for their overnight camp just outside Bridestowe.

A spokesperson for Tavistock College said: ‘The students walked in three groups and managed to reach their destination exactly on time, some smiling and some grimacing, but all over the moon that they had completed their first day pretty much unscathed. The evening was spent putting up tents, cooking meals and generally relaxing after a hard day.

‘Again, an early start was made on Sunday with some pretty sleepy expressions but what a day, late September sunshine over the beauty of Dartmoor, does it get any better?!

‘A few navigational errors saw one of the groups drop behind time but some extra walking pace soon brought them back on track. A final encounter with a herd of rather over-friendly cows encouraged the teams to race to the finish.

‘A final debrief with the assessor saw all 16 students successfully complete their expedition.

‘A massive well done to Year 10’s Evy Spinou-Whiteley, Meagan Jenkins, Freya Hopkins, Emily Hill, Kate Mugridge-Guest, Jack Kerswill and Dylan Wood, Year 11’s Tamara Speare, Joe Mulroy, Nathan Ord, Ryan Brimacombe, Nathan Sellars, Joe Carver, Gemma Arundel, Errikos Harrison and Year 12’s Olivia Bates.’