Festivals- the conclusion!!

Dear followers,
as this blog is predominately for my degree, there is always a section of reflective thinking. The final thought process of how the placement went, what went wrong etc. There is a conclusion for the 'Fossil Fool's Day' blog, embedded into the last entry of that event, but it is not in the lay out that will follow.
To make things easier for everyone (!), I have laid out my final conclusion/evaluation as thus:
(There are always certain criteria one has to follow to tick all the right boxes, these are as such.)
Construct and maintain a reflective journal, this must show. . .
1. Your feelings throughout each placement.
2. Whether a specific process worked or not and why.
3. How your journal will change as a result of your reflective journal.
4. The affect work experience has had on your career plans.
5. How your feelings have changed towards your course/career as a result of your placement.

Because I don't want to type up these questions every time I want to right an evaluation, I will number them as above.
And so. . . this is a critical evaluation of all the festivals I stewarded for this summer, with help from Oxfam.
1. In answering question one (see above), my feelings throughout doing the stewarding differed greatly depending on what festival I was at, and the jobs that I was doing. For example, at Beautiful Days, the last festival I stewarded at, I was very laid back and happy. The atmosphere there was greatly different from the other two, and I also felt confident in the job I was doing. At WOMAD, there was definitely a feeling of anger and frustration at some of the festival goer's attitudes towards me. In regards to Oxfam, I found them very helpful whenever I needed them. It is very well organised, it's only some of the people that say they're going to volunteer, but then don't as to why they are sometimes stressed. Also, because these were smaller festivals, and not on the scale of Glastonbury, everything is a bit more laid back, and you can make mistakes, and as long as it's not life threatening, they don't mind. Oxfam respect's those who are polite, turn up to their shifts on time, don't take drugs/alcohol on their shift etc. If you stick to the policy, which isn't too much to ask, then you will get out of the volunteering as much as you put in.

2. In answering question 2, as I have briefly mentioned above, Oxfam are very organised. They have been a presence at festivals for over 10 years and know how things show work and what doesn't. They know how many stewards they need for each festival, where they should be located and so on. The only aspect I found that not necessarily didn't work, but was disappointing to see, was the amount of volunteers who drop out at the last minute. Oxfam relies on volunteers to help them make a festival a safe and fun environment to the festival goer's. If you say to the organiser's that this organisation can provide X amount of stewards and only half turn up, it is up to Oxfam to make it right. Many other volunteers were doing extra shifts to cover those who dropped out.
This is where problems can start to arise. For example, if there are not enough stewards to covered a certain crowded tent area, something might happen and an injury might occur. Or if there are not enough stewards in a bar area, or on a fire tower, places where you need people to be, in case something happens, this can also be a bad thing.
But for the overall process, things run very smoothly (from my experience).

3. In answering question 3, because of some of the feedback I have had, from followers reading my blog- I have regulalry gone back through my blog and just clarified bits for my readers.

4. In answer to question 4, through doing this placement, even the bad encounters I had with people, I have found it extremely enjoyable. I have gone out of my way to understand how everything fits together in a festival/gig sense. I have to say that I have enjoyed the sense of power I had been given, telling people where to go/ what to not take onto the site and so on. With power comes responsibility, I felt handled every situation to the best of my ability and not more so. Because there are so many other things I want to do and experience in my life, I cannot say how this has affected my career plans. I will certainly take on board the skills/ knowledge and contacts I have made, and maybe I will use them in future.

5. In answer to question 5, I feel I have changed with the way I look at certain situations. I felt I could handle the general public before the festivals, and now I can say I can handle them in these situations as well. In regards to my possible future career, as in question 4, here's where I have a problem. I don't yet know what I want my future career to be, don't yet know what I want to do. This is why I wanted to experience many different placements before I found one that suited me. The festivals could well be a career path that I would be happy to go down, but I want to do and see as much as possible before I make that choice.

In regards to my Aims and Objectives- set out in the first ever post (below for clarification):

1. I hope to understand how the organisation comes together to operate a stress-free festival.

I feel I have done that. I spoke to many people people who worked for Oxfam for years, and some whose this was their first year, like me! I spoke to security officers and asked how they fit in to the whole scheme of things. I spoke to safety officers, producers, technicians, ambulance men, proprietors, and then the festival goer's. From my research, I now have an idea of how a festival all comes together.

2. I hope to have the confidence to use my logic and knowledge to help in whatever situation arises.

Certainly the first shift I was apprehensive. Sometimes I feel Oxfam expects too much from their stewards. The first shift, I almost didn't want to do anything that might put me in a position that would have confrontation or a situation that I would feel out of my depth. But, as with everything, you start to understand when and when not to get involved with something that might turn.

3. I hope to make valuable contacts within these different organisations and put them to use in the future.

While at these festivals, as already mentioned, I met so many people from all walks of life. I don't feel I've given up on Oxfam at all, as I plan to steward with them next year. Because I didn't cause any trouble (!) and didn't go out of my way to make a nuisance, I was there to do a job, I haven't burned any bridges for coming years.

4. I hope to fulfill the requirements of a steward to the best of my ability.

Without being too egotistical, I felt i did this. If I was free, I was there if there was a problem, and even when I wasn't on shift, I was still thinking about the safety of the festival goer's!! I didn't have any complaints made about me, I turned up on shift on time and well prepared, so I don't see why I didn't do the job to the best of my ability.

Keep coming back for more updates from my burlesque placement!!

Keep smiling
Ruby Foxglove x x x