Matthew Huxter

I started volunteering for the Nofitstate circus archive project after I found it advertised on Volunteering Wales. I volunteered because I needed work experience in Archives for my Gradedge award and because I wanted to learn more about archives. I enjoyed my experience at Nofitstate because I met interesting people such as Toby Philpott -Jabba the Hutt's left hand man. I enjoyed the flexible timetable and not having to come in everyday, as well as the varied work. I helped catalogue artefacts and sort through documents,I learned about exhibitions and helped brainstorm ideas for one, I did research on the internet. I always worked with a partner, which helped me develop my teamwork skills. I learned how to preserve historical documents - sealing them inside special acid-proof polythene bags. I learned a little about digitisation through watching and through listening I learned about basic internet security. I also learned about how exhibitions are created which may help me if I decide to work at a museum.