The Accipiter - Behind the scenes June 2005

Behind the Scenes - June 2005

This regular feature is a glance at some of what goes on inside while the ‘flying’ staff and guests are enjoying themselves outside! This month Tracey Smith gives us some insight into what a busy Bank Holiday weekend entails.

As my title of Sales and Marketing Manager tends to lead you to believe, I spend a great deal of my time behind a desk in the Trust office, usually tapping away on a computer or with a phone fixed to an ear. However as a reward for good behaviour I am allowed outside on a Sunday to host activity days, and on Bank Holiday Mondays, when our normal wave of extra visitors means all hands to the deck.

As all our visitors know we always look very professional and organised, no matter how many are sat watching the displays; so I thought I would take this opportunity to reveal what goes on behind the scenes on a busy day.

Everyone starts bright and early at 8.30am, and first task of the day is weighing and putting out the flying team birds, before everyone heads off to their own sections. Each member of the falconry staff looks after everything on their section from feeding birds, aviary and ground maintenance, cleaning seats and signs, to

Everything must be spick and span at the start of the day!

>picking up litter. Any extra staff or volunteers are employed doing last minute tidying jobs, cleaning and refilling water bowls, out with the strimmer to cut down the weeds and stinging nettles that seem to have appeared overnight, then raking and sweeping up the debris. Phil Gifford is in charge of cleaning the toilets and making sure there are extra supplies of paper and hand towels available, to refill during the day, then it's on to the tasks of scrubbing all the picnic tables and emptying the bins on the patio and picnic areas.

>Gift shop staff are busy restocking and tidying all the shelves, stocking up guidebooks, passports and handouts at the reception counter, as well as laying on extra volunteers to help collect Gift Aid at the entrance.

In the Coffee shop extra supplies of ice cream have arrived, and staff are busy making sandwiches, baguettes, paninis, and getting out all the supplies for the lunchtime BBQ. The info point leaflets have to be re stocked, as well as extra copies of the handouts available in the Gift Shop.

The Valley of the Eagles demonstration crowd overflowed the seating area.

At 10.00am everyone stops for a well earned break of a cup of coffee and the chance to be assigned the days duties by Ashley. One person draws the short straw and has to go straight out into the car park. Visitors can start arriving at 9.30am, and unfortunately if we do not have someone starting off the parking we can have all sorts of problems, such as sideways parking under the trees (taking up 3 parking places), three row parking (blocking the middle car in) or, as has been seen, parking in the middle of the driveway. As we get busier more people are sent down the car park to direct people as we go further along the field. It can be a long day, especially if it's hot, but I think it is one of the nicest places to be, not only for watching the wild birds such as skylarks and Red Kites flying overhead but, as you are the first person people see when they arrive, a smile and a chat goes a long way to starting off an enjoyable visit. Also you become an information centre, giving times of displays etc, but it does have its rewards such as picnickers often feeling sorry for you and sharing their lunch and glasses of wine with you. Although it never fails to amaze me how many people choose to eat their lunch in a dusty car park with cars passing by full of fumes, when we have 22 acres of beautiful grounds inside. >This year the car park had an international flavour with Cedric, our French work experience student lending a hand, answering any difficult questions with "I am sorry I don't understand. I am French".

The Sir William Gasgoine Fellowship displays interested visitors of all ages

We try to make sure there is lots to do throughout the day, and a timetable of extra events is set up such etc Harris Hawk flying sessions and hospital tours to spread the visitor numbers around the grounds. You tend to find there are surges of people at certain times of the day - everyone is at the 12, then they all go to lunch, then up to the 2, back down to lower grounds for hawks, ferrets and last flying display, so you have to make sure that your staff and volunteers move with them to those busy areas.

This Mayday we were lucky as we also had a display of medieval life by the Sir William Gasgoine Fellowship, and their displays of cooking, spinning archery and weaponry pulled in the crowds. The first display begins and already the seats are all full and visitors have to stand at the back. Staff and volunteers have to man the gate, and stand at the back of the audience to make sure visitor don't walk out whilst a bird is flying, or hoist an unruly child into the air as the falcon or vulture flies past. This is my opportunity to run down to the ladies and refill all the toilet paper holders, and usually put in a new roller towel. Anyone who witnessed this on Bank Holiday will agree it should have been a challenge on the Krypton Factor! For some strange reason it's >very rare that the gent's paper needs refilling during the day, but we won't question that.

Brenda tells visitors about the chick in the incubator.

Then lunchtime has arrived and to try and spread visitor numbers lunchtime BBQ is underway as well as the normal menu in Duffy's, and this year we have a stop me and buy one bicycle selling ice creams around the grounds. Car park attendants have to be given breaks over lunch, and there are normally cries over the radio for more change, onions for the BBQ, wasp ease and a 1001 other queries to answer.

After a pretty short lunch its up to the meadow to encourage visitors to be very un-British and sit close together to allow the seats to be totally filled, or help to sit people down in the wildflower meadow. You check that all the speakers are working, carry a spare battery in your pocket in case the microphone stops, and keep an eye out for any pieces of food the Kites may drop in the audience. The other nerve racking job is to switch on the music at just the right point, Ashley prides himself on the eagles just coming home on the crescendo and woe betide anyone who pushes the button on the cd player at the wrong point. I'm probably left to do it because they think he won't shout at his wife!! Sorry to have to spoil the illusion folks - the Eagles can't hear the music, it's having the knowledge and experience to know on which turn the eagles will head for home. Then after tractor and trailer rides around the meadow, Harris Hawk flying and normally sorting out the blocked toilets (a common Bank Holiday occurrence and who says working at the Trust is glamorous), there is a quick swig of a cold drink before the last display of the day.

Depending on how many volunteers are here, its then either helping with the ferrets race to raise funds for the charity, or down to the gift shop to help join the many visitors who wish to become members, 71 over this Mayday weekend alone.

The day ends as it starts - tidying, cleaning and picking litter.

Following the Heron feed and the chance to see the Red Kites coming into feed, and the kestrel on her eggs via the nest box camera, its time to shut up shop. All the open top aviaries are fed at night; the chicken and ducks have to be locked up (not always an easy job on a nice sunny evening), and the flying birds placed in their night-time quarters. Every bin on the park has to be emptied, and new bags put in ready for the next day and litter picked up from around the grounds. Occasionally we have to wake up sleeping sunbathers to say its time to go home, or maybe search for wayward birds that are still flying around. Then when all the tills are counted, takings banked, Gift and Coffee shop locked up, it's a chance for us to relax. For some strange reason (although more in our younger days) this would be the point when someone would say lets have a game of rounders or football, not the best idea after a tiring day!! Nowadays we tend to open a bottle or send off an order to the local chip shop, put our feet up, talk about the day, thank the weatherman if he got it right or curse him if it rains, and look forward to a quieter and less busy tomorrow.

Click here for previous Behind the Scenes articles