Placement student gains valuable experience at Washington Wetland Centre

Each and every day we are inspired by our staff and volunteers. We are very fortunate to work in an environment with so much passion, knowledge and trust. One where we motive our peers and encourage growth for anyone that wants it.

We open this opportunity up every year to placement students looking to gain some valuable hands-on experience in a field they hope to progress a career in, but also to introduce them to the everyday world of working within a charity and business.

Living collection placement student Chandani Holliday was selected to enjoy a years experience with us here at Washington Wetland Centre and has gained so much knowledge and experience during her 12 month placement. She has became an important part of the team and has worked with such care and dedication - she will go far!

We asked Chandani what her role entails...

There are alot of routine tasks that need completed on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. This can be anything from ensuring waterways are clear, vegetation management - especially during warmer months when everything is literally spring to life, grass cutting and trimming trees and sedges. There can be alot of machinery to use from ride on mowers to strimmer’s and push mowers - all of which I received training for at the start of my placement.

Fence lines also need replacing and shelters need building for the birds to hide in when it’s hot or rainy. Fence line maintenance requires the use of hand tools, many of which I was unfamiliar with at the start of the placement, but I've been taught what to use, how to use them and the best materials to do the job effectively.

Raking flamingo island and cleaning the house is always a fun thing to do and is key for ensuring the island is in tip top shape for the birds- being so close to such impressive birds is really exciting and I love hearing them chatter on as I work.

There’s also the slightly less appealing jobs of clearing out the otter halt and cleaning up otter poop - plus any time you hold a bird there's the risk of being pooped on multiple times!

Routine feeds are done twice a day. The collection is split into two feeds - one with the outdoor collection birds, and the other checking on our otter family as well as offering training and enrichment for them.

I also do regular keeper talks to visitors with the otters and flamingos. The talks were scary at first and some days go better than others, but the audience are always encouraging and interested to hear what you've to say. I enjoy getting asked questions too - some people ask how big the flamingos wing span is, some ask how many teeth the otters have; there’s a really wide variety of questions and I love coming away having learnt something new myself!

Breeding season is by far everyone’s favourite season - everyone looks forward to it and even though it can be quite intense it's so rewarding and the young ducklings and goslings that hatch are unbelievably cute. My personal favourites have been the red-breasted geese and the paradise shelduck. But I think the white-headed ducks and the Meller's ducks should get an honourable mention!

On the note of honourable mentions, this year I was lucky enough to be around when the Eurasian crane pair had their very first chick. It hatched on 9 May and I was the lucky one to find it (feeling privileged). I went to check on the egg and saw this TINY little orange fluff ball!

The team at Washington is amazing. The team I work with directly is so great, they have taught me so much, and helped me to feel really at home. So many skills have come from joining the team on all of their responsibilities. The wider team is also great!

Why do it? Well, the practical skills in itself was enough to convince me to apply for the placement, but after being here for so long, I think the friendships and memories and experiences are more than rewarding and makes it such a great year!

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