ABOUT FOTA E&L

Company Documents - Partnerships

FOTA E&L (Friends of the Award Edinburgh and the Lothians) is both a not-for-profit company, limited by guarantee, and a charity. This provides both a robust financial structure and reporting system and the ability to fundraise to support our ambitions to make the DofE accessible to all.

Friends of the Award, known locally as 'Friends', was established in 1998 with the remit to support the operation of the DofE throughout the Edinburgh and Lothians area. The charity has a Board of Directors and Management Committee composed entirely of volunteers. Board Members come from a variety of professional backgrounds – law, banking, police, teaching – and give very generously of their time to manage and support the work of FOTA.

Friends of the Award is funded almost entirely by charitable donations and sponsorship. Within this new funding landscape we are building up our ability to generate some of our own funds (training, committee and expedition expertise).

Within recent years we have secured funding to extend the reach of the DofE to more disadvantaged young people – working with the Youth Offending Service, CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service), the Red Phone Box (DofE one-to-one mentoring service) and Open Award Groups (allowing people out with mainstream schooling to complete their DofE Awards).

Our Business Plan

Supporting Transitions : 3 year plan from 2010

“Friends of the Award have provided significant 'added value' to the delivery of the DofE in Edinburgh over a number of years. Through their innovative work they now have significant expertise in successfully using the DofE as a method of engaging marginalised young people, building capacity through partnership working and supporting volunteers.” Barry Fisher, Director – Scotland DofE