The Duke of Edinburgh congratulated hundreds of young people as they celebrated their gold awards in a festival-style party at The Palace of Holyroodhouse. Around 600 gold award winners gathered in the palace gardens on Friday for games, food stalls and various activities to mark their achievements.
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award (DofE) was founded by the late Prince Philip in 1956 and requires young people to complete physical, skills, volunteering and expedition sections as well as a residential to achieve gold status. The Duke of Edinburgh, who received his own award from his father Prince Philip in 1986, delivered a speech praising the attendees' dedication.
Duke jokes about expedition challenges
"It's really good to see you all here today, and particularly, congratulations to each and every one of you who have managed to achieve your gold DofE," the Duke told the crowd. He added that the celebration was "our recognition and celebration of your achievements" and hoped it would be "an excellent day" for them.
Reflecting on his own experience, the Duke joked about the challenging moments during the award process. "I hope the experience of doing your award was a good one, that it was enjoyable. I'm guessing there were probably times when you were wondering why you were doing it, and if it was anything like mine that was probably about halfway through the expedition!"
Olympic runner shares resilience story
Attendees heard from famous Scots including Olympic runner Eilish McColgan, singer Nathan Evans and actor James Cosmo. McColgan, a British and European record holder, delivered a speech alongside Nerea Winchester, 18, from Glasgow, who celebrated her own gold award achievement.
McColgan shared her experience of breaking her foot during a televised race in 2011 when she was dreaming of qualifying for the world championships. Despite a surgeon telling her she would never run professionally again and could only "hobby jog", she drew on the resilience learned through community support similar to the DofE experience.
Young ambassador finds creative outlet
"There are many similarities between the DofE and my athletics club. Not just in the obvious areas like hard work and discipline, but that sense of community," McColgan said. She emphasised being "surrounded by likeminded individuals, all striving to make themselves better" and credited her support network for helping her recovery.
Winchester, also a DofE youth ambassador who volunteered for Oxfam for three years as part of her award, spoke about finding confidence and creativity through the programme. "Through my DofE sections, I found groups and niches of people who not only accepted my chatty, loud self, but embraced it fully," she said.
Actor praises dedication of participants
She discovered knitting through her DofE Skills section, describing it as "an amazing creative outlet" that helped build her resilience and rediscover her creativity. "DofE gave me a purpose in life and let me express my creativity like never before," Winchester added.
Actor James Cosmo encouraged parents and young people to consider the award programme, telling PA News Agency that regardless of circumstances, "there's something there to suit you and your future career, for your personal development, nothing beats it". He praised participants for their dedication, noting they often work without recognition before finally being celebrated for their achievements.
(PA) Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.