Amey and The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award publish social value report to mark 17th year of partnership

24 Jan 2020

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• Report shows that the partnership has so far helped 3,468,836 young people start their DofE journey 
• Of these 287,937 have started in the last year and 68,774 have come from disadvantaged backgrounds
• In the last year alone, the partnership has delivered 136,299 volunteering hours and contributed £545,195 back to communities across the UK and overseas

Amey and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award have published a landmark social value report to mark their 17th year of partnership. The report summarises the lifechanging opportunities that the partnership has delivered over the last 12 months and the significant difference it continues to make to young people’s lives. 

Amey is a founding member of the Duke of Edinburgh’s strategic partnership programme, which since 2014 has enabled almost 3.5m young people to start their DofE journey and develop the confidence, resilience and team-working skills required to lead a successful career and fulfilled life beyond the workplace. 

Amey’s original partnership with DofE began much earlier in 2002, and as part of its broader approach to social value and community investment, Amey has enabled over 500 apprentices to undertake the Duke of Edinburgh’s programme, helping address skills shortages across the UK and invest in the communities in which Amey delivers services.  

According to the charity’s data, Amey’s financial donations in the last year have made it possible for 7000 young people across the UK to contribute over 69,000 volunteering hours and the equivalent of £280,000 to local communities. The partnership has meanwhile delivered 136,299 volunteering hours and £545,195 back to communities across the UK and overseas. 

Among the young people to have benefitted from Amey’s partnership with DofE is Bilay Valley, a trainee engineer in Amey’s Consulting business, who describes his time as a volunteer for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award as ‘transformational’: “As a junior coach, my duties included registering new participants on the programme, organising their equipment, leading training sessions and addressing queries and concerns. 

“At first I found the experience tough, especially working with new people and in an unfamiliar environment, but before long my communications skills really improved as I adapted my style to suit the audience and was able to develop new leadership skills.”   

For Sarah Stevenson, working for Amey opened her eyes to the joy of volunteering. Her DofE challenge took her to a Masai community in Kenya where she helped at an orphanage and local school while coping without basic needs that are often taken for granted. 

She recalls: “I quickly learned to live with no access to running water, no electricity or technology. I bathed in a river and had to scout for food. It was quite an adventure and the experience has left me a more resilient person.” 

Reflecting on the impact of Amey’s Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, Emily Davies, Amey’s Head of Social Impact, said: “The last year has again shown the importance of our partnership with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. We are very proud of what we have achieved together over the last 17 years and look forward to developing our partnership further and doing even more to help transform young people’s lives.” 

Caroline Glen, Fundraising Director at The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, added: “Everyone at Amey has proved themselves true advocates of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award over many years. So many have gone above and beyond with their Gold DofE Award or by taking part in the DofE Adventure. Their stalwart support is transforming the lives of many thousands of young people across the UK, and they have helped us build on our successes and develop into areas where we struggled to reach them. We could not do this valuable work without their generous, unwavering investment – we are extremely proud of our partnership with Amey.” 

Read more about the Amey and Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Partnership here:www.amey.co.uk/your-career/apprentices/duke-of-edinburghs-gold-award/ 

Access the report here:http://ameyworld.ameygroup.int/media/14462/dofe-report.pdf

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