From Books to Barn Owls: My week of work experience
Work experience placements provide invaluable opportunities to gain hands-on experience in a workplace. Throughout the year, we offer a limited number of work experience placements. This blog is written by our recent participant, Year 10 student, Safia, and offers a glimpse into the diverse range of activities and projects they were involved in within the Heritage and Archaeology and Natural Environment teams.
Monday – Buckinghamshire Council has a large variety of roles and responsibilities, one of them being the library service, which is where I spent my first day of work experience. The day was certainly a page turner as I got to help with school visits, work behind the main desk, shelve books and understand all the different things the library can provide. I enjoyed being given responsibilities and working with the team, who were very welcoming.
Tuesday – For my second day of work experience I was given the opportunity to go to a workshop run by all the members of the Chalk Cherries Chairs (CCC) project at Missenden Abbey. The project is a 5-year landscape partnership scheme working to improve the wildlife and understanding of the heritage in the central Chilterns. I loved watching the discussions and debates that happened, especially since I was given a role to take notes. I learnt to use Mentimeter to vote on different things, which made the session fun and interactive.
Wednesday – On Wednesday I spent time with the archaeology team and I got to experience the different working environments that officers work in, as I divided my time between the Council offices and an archaeological site where they were mapping out places to continue digging. I was fortunate enough to be given an insight to the history and importance of archeology and the archaeology team’s role in advising on planning applications within the Council. While in the office I learnt about the importance of the Historic Environment Record, which can be seen online here: Buckinghamshire's Heritage Portal I was also amazed by how much I could learn in one day about archaeology, from understanding what the different colours of the soil mean, to identifying ancient pottery in the ground.
Thursday – On Thursday I went out with an amazing ecologist who showed me the importance of our local wildlife and how we protect it. He filled the day with a variety of tasks beginning with checking on the new bat barns, which provide an important roosting space for the bats that were displaced by nearby construction. We next did a couple of screening visits to advise homeowners on their planning applications. He showed me what to look out for when inspecting for wildlife, including nests, droppings and gaps in the roofs. To continue we next went to Calvert Jubilee Nature Reserve where we looked for grass snakes and slow worms, but we didn’t see any due to the mid-day heat. However, we were lucky enough to find a bee orchid, wild strawberries, and a day flying moth. We saved the best till last and went to a lucky landowner’s barn owl box and met with another licensed ecologist to tag a barn owl and her four chicks. It was certainly an unforgettable day which has made me think about volunteering with nature conservation groups.
It was an amazing week, being fortunate enough to have people take time out of their day to give me an insight into their working world. I’ve learnt what it’s like in an office atmosphere and about the importance of site visits. I now know that experiences like this are the best sources of guidance when it comes to making big decisions in school. I’m very grateful to the generous people who I have spent this week with and envy the next students who will enjoy it as much as I have.
