Royal reward for remarkable achievements

PAST pupil Lucy Mills has celebrated achieving her gold Duke of Edinburgh Award at Buckingham Palace.

She is one of 13 RGS pupils, past and present, who have demonstrated extraordinary perseverance, creativity and resilience to complete their gold DofE awards over the last year.

This hard-earned accomplishment ,which represents the highest level of commitment within the DofE scheme, is recognised with a special celebration at a royal palace, attended by a member of the Royal Family, to which participants are invited within the first five years of achieving their award. 

Lucy, who left RGS in 2024, was among the several thousand students invited to Buckingham Palace in May for an award presentation ceremony attended by His Royal Highness Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh.

It was one of four special events attended by 8,000 young people who have completed their gold DofE awards, with appearances from inspirational celebrity speakers including footballer Alex Scott.

Those RGS pupils past and present who gained the prestigious gold award in the past year, from May 2024 to May 2025, are:

Mhairi Maxwell (2018 leaver)

Shona Laycock (2022 leaver)

Kristina Todd (2023 leaver)

Lily Howard (2024 leaver)

Aliza Mansoor (2024 leaver)

Isla Mayfield (2024 leaver)

Lucy Mills (2024 leaver)

Isabelle Whitehead (Year 13)

Ella-Grace Foster (Y13)

Anastasia Bell (Y13)

Tahlia Marshall (Y13)

Olivia Briggs (Y13)

Sophie Wedgner (Y13)

To gain the gold award, participants must undertake six to 18 months of skill, volunteering and physical activity, in addition to a gruelling five-day expedition in the Lake District and week-long residential activity, which must all be completed by 25 years of age.

The annual presentation celebration events take place at either Buckingham Palace in London, The Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh or Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland. Alternatively, participants can receive their gold award certificate in a bespoke presentation folder.

RGS DofE co-ordinator Ruth Smith said: "Well done to all. Everyone at RGS is very proud of you, as this award represents significant and sustained effort and is highly deserved."

*Photo, top, from the RGS gold assessed expedition of summer 2023, showing four of those who have gained gold awards this last year, all 2024 RGS leavers: Lily Howard, Aliza Mansoor, Isla Mayfield and Lucy Mills.

From the DofE website:

HIS Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh welcomed 8,000 Gold DofE award holders to Buckingham Palace – recognising their incredible achievement

Around 2,000 DofE gold award holders were guests of honour in the Buckingham Palace Garden for the first of a number of very special events to mark their achievements, recognising thousands of young people who have shown extraordinary perseverance, creativity and resilience to complete their gold DofE in schools, community organisations, youth groups and workplaces, all over the UK.

The Buckingham Palace Garden had been transformed into a festival-style celebration for young people and their loved ones, with giant deckchairs, bunting, and garden games and activities. Attendees had the chance to hear from famous DofE award holders and sporting legends, and pick up career advice from actors, presenters, authors, and campaigners, at stages throughout the garden.

The morning celebration saw His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh – who received his own gold award from his father Prince Philip at nearby St James’s Palace in 1986 – congratulate attendees in a speech from the Palace’s West Terrace, telling them that they should all be “incredibly proud” and “stand a few inches taller”. The Duke also met award holders, hearing about the positive impact their DofE has had on them.

Alex Scott MBE delivered an inspiring speech alongside Poppy Bough, 20, from Beverley who celebrated her own gold award achievement.

Alex Scott shared the lessons she’d learnt from her own career, telling the crowd: “My story starts with football and the football cage at the end of my street in my council estate. I’m an East London girl through and through – a borough called Tower Hamlets. This football cage was the most unglamorous thing ever. It was a patch of concrete – a wire cage with two goals at either end. I had to fight my brother and his mates for time on the ball, for them to pick me. That cage was my Wembley it’s where my dreams began – and I still get such a smile on my face thinking about it. I played every game for England like I still had something to prove against my brother’s mates in that East London estate.

“Find that space that feels like your own football cage. That’s powerful. Somewhere that feels safe, but gives you the confidence to dream massive. Just like the DofE. That willingness to try, to push yourself, to work as a team while standing tall as an individual. You never know where it might lead – but I promise you, if you keep stepping forwards with that spirit, you’ll end up somewhere amazing. Maybe even somewhere you never thought possible – like me back in Tower Hamlets, dreaming of Wembley.

“I’ll finish with a few words of advice: step onto every new pitch like you own it. Don’t be afraid to take the challenging shots. And never stop fighting for the ball!”

Poppy, who has autism, told the crowd how the DofE was life-changing for her. She said: “Before I began my DofE, I had never spent a night away from home and I had no friends to do it with. At the first meeting, I stood there petrified, but for the first time ever, I saw something I could join in with.

“Thanks to the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award I have pushed myself further than I thought possible. I became an NHS cadet, I completed my first aid qualification and learned sign language, I trained to run a 10k and I became an expert at cooking a curry from scratch and even took spices and coconut milk on my expedition. Walking miles with others and being able to join in with conversations was also a first for me. I learnt surprising things like Love Island was not a documentary about Ireland!

“I had always spent my time isolated and watching from the side. Suddenly I was part of something and encouraging others in from the sidelines too. The Poppy that I was at the start of this journey would never have stood here today. I am grateful to DofE for showing me that I am strong, I am different, but I no longer want to be the same as everyone else – I just want to be me.”

the Gold Assessed Expedition Summer 2023 which show 4 of those who have gained Gold Award this last year: Lily Howard (left RGS summer 2024) Aliza Mansoor (left RGS summer 2024) Isla Mayfield (left RGS summer 2024) Lucy Mills (left RGS summer 2024)).

RGS students on their gold expedition