Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award for Corey Sutherland
— 03 May 2017
Corey Sutherland, who is an apprentice technician in his second year at our Taunton office, recently received his Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award at a locally held ceremony, and will attend a presentation at St. James’s Palace later this year.
Corey, having already achieved the Bronze Award, did: -
• 18 months volunteering at a local primary school helping children in their reading, writing and various activities;
• 12 months’ physical activity,
• 6 months developing a new skill learning to drive and maintain his vehicle,
• 5-night residential stay assisting challenged students with a range of activities and public speaking,
• 3-night practice expedition – walking on Exmoor with a group,
• 4-night final expedition – walking on Dartmoor.
Quote from final expedition leader “Corey and his fellow members of the Purple Team enjoyed a very successful five-day expedition amongst the wilds of Dartmoor. Teamwork, navigation, camp craft and logistical skills were fully tested throughout the venture – Corey responded positively to every challenge and managed to complete his Gold Expedition whilst enduring real extremes of climate and terrain. I am impressed that Corey had time to have his 17th birthday yet still manage to help his fellow team members and cope with the heat.”
The awards, established by the Duke of Edinburgh in 1956, give young people aged 14 to 24 the opportunity to take part in the world’s leading youth achievement award, pushing personal boundaries, gaining new skills and enhancing their CVs and university applications.
Corey has been with the practice since July 2015 on day release for his BTEC course at the University Centre Somerset. We have been helping Corey develop his drawing skills and experience for listed building and planning applications and detailed design, as well as providing an insight into the day to day running of projects.
Corey is very engaged in his approach to work and has some great 3D skills in SketchUp and Vectorworks. The Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award is a fantastic extracurricular achievement which speaks volumes of his abilities beyond his qualification and CV.
