River joined us for a week of work experience in April 2025. Read about their experience in River’s blog below.

“My time doing work experience at the Staffordshire History Centre has been wonderful! I spent a week completing this, which included a trip to the off-site Museum Collection Store (with even more historical goodies stored there). I enjoy history on every level imaginable and this experience has only enhanced my adoration.  This work experience was everything I hoped it would be and more, it showed me the ins and outs of running a history centre whilst giving me hands on experience with actual artefacts and interacting with customers.

During the week that I completed my work experience, a school trip, a visit from the Cheshire Archives and a meeting with the Chair of the Staffordshire Women’s Institute took place. All three of these were wonderful for me to witness and help with, whilst being entirely different to anything anyone else would have experienced. On top of these unique activities, I helped by accosting (labelling) items and learning how to answer enquiries to the Research Room – standard things for the Centre and things that others would have had the opportunities to partake in. All this experience has helped to boost my confidence and knowledge of preserving historical items for generations to come.

The highlight of my week was working with the team to help to carefully look after and store historical items in ways that would allow others to find them when needed and allow them to be enjoyed and studied later down the line. This was done in both my time at the off-site unit and the Research Room. The off-site Museum Collection Store holds a large volume of objects – without having careful processes in place it would be easy for items to become lost. My job was to ensure items were in their correct boxes, and putting recently displayed items back into their correct boxes in a safe way for the object. Being able to handle clothing and shoes showed me just how delicate things can become over time, and my time there gave me greater appreciation for the patience of those in charge of collections for when the label is wrong.

A close second was helping on the school trip, being able to see the next generation of budding historians that were more than prepared to get their hands stuck into coal; strike posters; and annual record books made my day. This was the start to my week but definitely allowed me to get stuck in right away. This busy day consisted of watching a team member give a talk to the class about some local history before aiding half of the group in their adventures in the William Salt Library. Answering questions from the children and helping them to handle indexes of years passed and read the tiny writing. Finally, I helped the team member on a tour around Stafford and watched them tell true stories to the children about the places beneath their feet and the people that stood there before them.

So, why should you do work experience here?

I could write a book about the opportunities I been given here and the ways that they have benefitted my character, but I’ve chosen to write about my top four.

The change in activity. The work experience timetable here is split into morning and afternoon sessions, allowing you to get a taste for the work that goes on in that particular area and having a go yourself. The sessions are adapted to the current goings on within the Centre and are kept fresh for each new person. These sessions given are long enough for you to be given an overview of the work the team do there and then get stuck in with as much support as you need. Each you do allows you to try and complete at least one full item on their agenda.

This brings me to my next point. The independence you gain from this experience is astounding. In this environment, you are treated as any other staff member would be, you are allowed to organise yourself and are trusted to do important tasks, however, if you need help; support; or breathing space, the experts are always there to back you up and make you feel comfortable. Autonomy is provided, allowing you to better develop time management and confidence.

Further, the team have an interest in you. Everyone I have worked with and interacted with on the team is an incredibly interesting and caring person. You are here for an extended length of time; everyone gets to know you and wants to know what makes you tick as much as you want to find out all about them. This, once again, boosts your confidence, knowledge, and allows you to expand as a person. If you know one of the team knows something about an area of history that you’re desperate to know more of, ask and they’ll tell you all about it!

Finally, the appreciation you get for all the hard work people put into the centre is incredible. If you have any intention of going into or interest in this line of work – even if you’re simply a frequenter of museums – consider applying for work experience here. Whilst the swan looks graceful whilst swimming, the legs are kicking frantically. At the History Centre, the legs are constantly kicking, and yet the swan couldn’t look more serene. If you want to truly understand the sheer amount of work that goes into one of these wonderful public spaces, work experience is a brilliant way to do this. You should especially consider this if history/museums is your intended career path. When you get into that field of work, you will be able to understand the qualms of the rest of your team and appreciate the hard work that goes into their jobs.”