Back in 1986, he was a student at St Edmund's College in Canberra, and completed the Duke of Edinburgh's Award and was presented with his gold award by the scheme's founder Prince Phillip at Government House.

Mr Hancock, now 52, was in the final years of school when he decided to do the award through St Edmund's. One of his challenges was riding his "very heavy, very pre-carbon fiber" bicycle to Batemans Bay with his team, camping along the way. It took him two-and-a-half years to complete the award.

"It really taught me that nothing good comes without hard work and resilience is key to success," he said.

The funeral for Prince Philip, who died on April 9, aged 99, will be held at Windsor Castle on Saturday at 3pm (British Summer Time) which is midnight Saturday AEST. Australian TV networks are covering the funeral from as early as 9.30pm on Saturday.

Prince Philip's many legacies include the Duke of Edinburgh's Award which he founded in 1956. It is open to young people aged 14 to 24. The award's Australian CEO Peter Kaye said this week almost 800,000 Australians had completed the award, including more than 10,000 in the ACT, since scheme began there in 1980.

Mr Kaye said there was no Duke of Edinburgh club as such and participants usually accessed it through their school or local community group. There are a number of ACT access places.

There were bronze, silver and gold levels designed to extend the person and take them out of their comfort zone, in areas of voluntary service, physical activity, learning a new skill and taking an "adventurous journey", usually overnight in unfamiliar territory. The idea was to set a goal and meet it. And it usually took years to complete.

"You can't fail the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, you can't win it. You do it," Mr Kaye said.

Three to 400 hundred young people are doing the award each year in the ACT, he said.

Born in Orange, Mr Hancock moved to Canberra with his parents when he was about seven years old. His late father Charlie Hancock was a commercial builder who was to work on the new Parliament House. His mother Margaret still lives in Stirling.

Mr Hancock said he felt privileged to receive his award direct from the Duke, who emphasised during that meeting that "the qualities of commitment and resilience and hard work that will stand you in good stead for your life and your community".

Prince Philip's death had given him pause to reflect on the impact of the award.

"It's taken this moment in time for me, personally, to remember and reflect on that and just acknowledge it's embedded in you," he said.

After school, Mr Hancock to Sydney for university. He and his wife Miriam have three children - Nicholas, Sarah and Kathryn. Sarah has completed the bronze level of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award.

Mr Hancock runs the management consultancy division for KPMG and sits on its global consultancy executive.

He said the award brought together participants from all sections of the community, which added dimension to his "private schoolboy" upbringing.

Working as a team was key in many of the challenges and it had influenced his working life.

"If you're focused and collaborate and work together as a team you can get there and I think those things have been fundamental to me in how I've operated and where I am today," he said.

He had been saddened by the passing of the Duke.

"My initial feeling was, here's a world leader that has committed his life to service and community service and contribution to his country and it's a great loss to the world," Mr Hancock said.

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