Antrim army cadet reaches final selection for prestigious national award with education charity CVQO

On the 11th April, 17 year old Adam Campbell, of Antrim and 20 more young competitors will face a challenging 36 hour assessment in the Quantock Hills in Somerset to determine which of them, selected from over 20,000 young people earning extracurricular qualifications with educational charity CVQO, can prove themselves worthy of the top prize.

The participants, all members of UK youth organisations, have been chosen to compete in the last round of selection for the Duke of Westminster Award 2012. The prestigious competition is organised by CVQO and sponsored by the organisation’s patron, the Duke of Westminster. Not only are the hopefuls competing for the highest accolade of being named winner, but also for a place as one of the top nine learners to participate in a three week expedition to South Africa.

The event will test communication, teamwork and leadership skills through a variety of demanding physical and mental tasks. This year, 250 entrants were nominated for the award. These are young people who possess a wide range of skills and abilities and have overcome personal challenges, as well as demonstrating a consistently high level of commitment to their communities and their peers. In addition, the activities undertaken during the challenge will meet the criteria for each candidate to achieve a Level 3 Award in Leadership from the Institute of Leadership and Management.

Adam is a member of 1st (NI) Battalion ACF and has completed a BTEC Diploma in Public Services with CVQO. Adam has hearing loss, and has found the CVQO-led BTEC qualification ideal in helping him achieve his goals.

“This qualification helped both my self-esteem and confidence. I now have an advantage over my hearing friends who will be trying to get into university and employment and don’t have extra qualifications. I now work as a team player, and am prepared for work related interviews. The CVQO-led BTEC shows employers that I am committed to long term success and hard work.”

Adam is currently at sixth form College in Ballymena, and plans to study Computer Science at university. His teachers were delighted with his CVQO qualification and believe the qualification will really help him with his future plans.

Edward Woods, Chief Executive of CVQO and head of the selection panel, said, “These cadets are the cream of the crop of over 20,000 CVQO learners. They have done extraordinarily well to get as far as the finals, but this week will prove to be the real test. The fantastic 3 week South Africa trip should be a real incentive!”

The nine finalists will be announced at the end of April and will attend an awards ceremony and luncheon in June, where the Duke of Westminster Award winner and runners up will be announced. All finalists will then participate in the expedition to South Africa.

In addition to other qualifications, all participating cadets have gained BTEC diplomas with CVQO, and cite this learning experience as invaluable to their future educational and career development.