Bo Mackenzie

I am an enthusiastic, hardworking and versatile Year 13 student keen and ready to enter the working world. My key strengths lie in being a do-er and taking on any challenge that come my way. I am planning to study business management at university. My hobbies include playing the piano and guitar, managing my Depop account and playing tennis.

Gold Duke of Edinburgh

By completing Gold DofE, I learnt many skills including, teamwork, problem-solving and resilience. in order to complete it, I had to fulfil many skills including; volunteering for the Marlborough LINK scheme of working with elderly members of the community and learning the skill of singing by completing my Grade 6 singing exam. The expedition was a big part of it

where I had to walk for 4 consecutive days and camp 3 nights, where at times we endured winds of -14 degrees. Finding and following a route that was co-ordinated with the required distance and desired camping spots was not achievable without significant problem solving and critical thinking.

Trained and competed in the 125 miles Devises to Westminster Canoe Race

The Devises to Westminster is a 125 mile canoe race. I had to train 3 /4 times a week for 7 months prior to the race. The training took place from September to March, thus throughout the Winter season where kayaking (and sometimes swimming) in frozen water was endured. I kayaked distances of 34 miles on school weekends, taking up my only day off (Sunday,) as I attend boarding school.

Mellon Educate Charity

I joined a group of 350 volunteers and travelled to Cape Town, South Africa, for a week where we collectively built a school for the children of Khayelitsha, and visited the schools built in previous years to teach the children English and play sports with them. I returned to volunteer for this charity again, in November 2024 during my U6th.

When I heard about Mellon Educate through a friend in 2023, I decided to dive in and involve myself in their charity and experience. I flew out to South Africa by myself and volunteered without the help or guidance from any family members. I managed to inspire my family about the benefits of the experience and influenced them to volunteer for the charity with me this year.