There's more to forestry than just trees!
Having to find a week’s work experience at the end of my first year of Sixth Form was a daunting thought, especially with no definite idea of my future career in mind.
So when dad suggested to me that I should come and see what goes on at the Forestry Commission in Bristol (and promised me it wasn’t all cutting down trees!) I thought it would be a good idea.
I was a little nervous on Thursday, my first day, thoughts of either a big scary office block, with David Brent style boss, or walking in and being handed an axe and told to get on with it were floating in my mind. However after a few minutes of being there I knew I had nothing to worry about.
My first two days were spent with the communications team, having never seen how a team like this works it was interesting to learn what they really do. After two days of writing press releases, ‘weekly buzz’ enewsletter entries and sorting out press cuttings, I was definitely ready for the weekend, but knew that by Sunday evening, I would be looking forward to going back on Monday morning.
The next part of my work experience was spent looking at the Forestry Commission as a whole. Monday was spent with the executive office in the morning, talking to them about their roles, and then my afternoon was spent with Kellie in the policy and programmes team, working on the intranet and hopefully being helpful!
Next stop – helping Sian in marketing to source t-shirts and sort out car parking tickets for the Discovery Pass. I really enjoyed seeing everything that went on in the marketing team and how it’s linked to the rest of the FC.
I also went downstairs and chatted to the people in grants and regulations. Having my dad work there, you’d think I’d know what they did, however even after the team’s explanation and his, it’s clear that it’s far too technical and complicated for my brain to cope with (but interesting nevertheless).
On Wednesday I had a break from my schedule in the national office and took a trip to Westonbirt Arboretum, which is managed by the Forestry Commission, to work with Katrina and the marketing team. I arrived in time to attend the monthly staff meeting, at which there was a talk by wildlife ranger at the Forest of Dean. Then it was back to the little marketing office to see more of what they got up to. I spent the morning looking through some facts and figures Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (ALVA) survey and typing up the findings. Then it was time for lunch, and it would have been rude not to appreciate the beautiful surroundings so I got an expert tour of the site by Katrina, which was very much appreciated. It was then an afternoon of looking more at what she and her team did and quickly my day was over.
It was a really good experience to see the organisation I’ve been working with for the past week in a completely different way.
Then, before I knew it, it was Thursday and my last day. Some work with finance and the design team was on the agenda and I think I’ve now seen almost every department that works in that office and each one has appealed to me in different ways.
Overall I’ve had a fantastic week, I haven’t met one person who hasn’t been helpful or friendly and I would definitely encourage anyone else thinking of coming to the Forestry Commission to do so. The variety within the organisation ranges wider than I ever would have imagined and I’d like to thank everyone that’s made me week so helpful, especially Becci Turner for organising my whole week, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it.
