Matthew Platt

A guest post by Juliette Simpson, work experience student.

For my year 10 work experience, I decided to come to the North Herts Museum in order to see the work it takes to organise a museum and put up the displays, I learnt all this and more.

All the staff were incredibly nice, and I learnt so much history about the area I am from. During my time here I helped with exhibitions, created a trail, logged multiple items and much more. It was a great insight into the world of work and how unpredictable daily life is in museums. It was also very interesting to go through things like documents that are hundreds of years old as well as explore the museum and its artifacts. Ultimately, I have really enjoyed my time here and will take the skills and knowledge I have acquired with me for the rest of my life.

 

Juliette working with a painting

Guest post by Isobel Evans, work experience student from Marriotts School, Stevenage. 

In February Isobel spent a week on work experience here at North Hertfordshire Museum. Isobel found inspiration in local woman Lady Constance Bulwer-Lytton of Knebworth House, who fought for the rights for women to vote.

A suffragette rosette badge from our collection

Isobel:

Whilst on my Year 12 work experience, I was shown around the museum, where I got the opportunity to learn about those who stood up for women’s rights during the early twentieth century.

The Lady Constance Bulwer-Lytton in particular, really stood out to me as she was someone who genuinely believed in what she stood for – the belief that women should be able to vote. As a result, she joined the Women’s Social and Political Union where she would give speeches around the country on women’s rights to vote. Some considered her beliefs and ideals to be controversial as she came from a wealthy family. When she got arrested, she disguised herself as Jane Wharton a middle-class seamstress as to avoid special treatment in prison. It’s quite admirable how she was willing to change her identity to fight for women’s rights and be subjected to what other women were going through without her privilege interfering with her treatment. I enjoyed reading about the women from where I am from and about how they went about getting their voices heard on their beliefs and the rights for all women.

 

A guest post by Coralie Smith, work experience student from Bedford Sixth Form

During my time at North Herts Museum this week for my Year 12 Work Experience I have gained lots of experience in what it takes to work at a museum and found it very interesting as prior to coming here I had little knowledge on the work that was done for the museum to function. All the staff at the museum have been so friendly during my week here and I found it very interesting to learn all about the different roles that are taken on by them.

I found it very interesting to see how far back in time some of the objects displayed at the museum go and loved learning the history behind them, my favourite being a Denarius of Elagabalus from Baldock which is being shown in their LGBT+ display where I learnt is considered to be one of the first known genderfluid Roman rulers.

As well as this, I found it very insightful being taught how to accession objects which are donated to the museum and learning how to do this in both the accessions register and their online database Ehive. On Ehive I found it very interesting to see the variety of items that have been donated to the museum and then researching items that I found interesting and didn’t have prior knowledge in. Overall, my time at the museum has been very eye opening in developing an understanding about the jobs that are done while working at a museum and learning different skills that are needed to do these jobs.

Coralie working on the record for a Peter Rabbit plush