'Rudra has achieved incredible things': Rugby teen selected as Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Youth Ambassador

Rudra Manda, 18, joins a cohort of just 35 DofE Award holders aged 16-24 from all over the UK, who will advocate for young people by sharing their expertise on key issues impacting them.

They will make young people’s voices heard by speaking at events, meeting key decision-makers in Parliament and beyond, and feeding into decisions to shape the direction of the DofE charity’s work.

Rudra jumped at the chance to start his DofE, achieving his bronze award as soon as he could.

The coronavirus pandemic meant that he missed out on his silver award, but he was able to get stuck into working towards his gold when things got back to normal.

Already a county level squash player, Rudra chose to use the sport for his physical section, with the DofE helping with his consistency and discipline.

Rudra, who attends Ashlawn School, said: “Squash was something I already had a passion for, so choosing it for my bronze DofE seemed a natural fit.

“I was training a lot and competing in tournaments, and the consistency of doing it for DofE meant that I progressed much more quickly.

"Unfortunately, the club closed due to Covid-19, so when I started my gold award, I had to find another physical activity to do, and chose weightlifting as I was starting to get into going to the gym.”

For his bronze volunteering section, Rudra worked in a Barnardo’s charity shop, helping him learn about working in retail, interacting with customers and meeting new people.

A lot of the customers tended to be older people, and interacting with people he wouldn’t usually meet gave him a different perspective.

For his gold award, he decided to follow another interest, and started working in hospital admin.

Rudra added: “I was thinking about studying medicine at university, so I thought using my DofE Volunteering section to explore that interest might help me decide whether it was for me.

"The ward I was on supported elderly patients, and I often had to motivate them when they were struggling. The experience has definitely made me appreciate the NHS more than ever.”

Rudra applied to be a DofE Youth Ambassador to continue his journey with the charity.

Doing DofE has inspired him to apply for other things, such as a leadership scheme with the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team, where he worked on public speaking and presenting skills with the help of a mentor.

Rudra added: “Doing my DofE has built my confidence in ways I couldn’t have imagined, and taught me things you can’t learn in a classroom.

"I really struggled with things like public speaking before I started the Aston Martin scheme, but my mentor really supported me and I managed to smash it. Without the confidence I gained from my DofE, I would never have thought to apply for something like that.”

Funded by The Gosling Foundation, the Youth Ambassador programme puts young people front and centre as future leaders, involving them in shaping the DofE’s work to benefit other young people.

DofE Youth Ambassadors have met Ministers and MPs, spoken at high-profile events such as party conferences and DofE Gold Award celebrations in Buckingham Palace Gardens, represented the DofE at international forums and played a pivotal role feeding into key decisions across the charity.

Ashley Williams, UK Youth Engagement Manager at The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, said: “Rudra is one of many young people who have achieved incredible things through their DofE.

“It’s not an easy time to be a young person, with the ongoing after-effects of the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis to contend with. Now more than ever, it’s crucial that all young people can access opportunities like the DofE, which let them have fun, grow their resilience and self-belief, and develop vital skills they can’t always get in the classroom.”