Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
About Me
Volunteering
Timeline
Generic
Fern Dobson

Fern Dobson

Ashburton,Devon

Summary

I am an ambitious, curious and empathic individual with a positive attitude and a passion for the outdoors. I thrive working as part of a team in a lively environment, delivering exceptional experiences to customers. I am a fast learner, and I am always looking to expand my skills and knowledge within the workplace.

Overview

9
9
years of professional experience
7
7
years of post-secondary education

Work History

Production Hand / Social media team

Living Energy Systems
Exeter, Devon
06.2023 - 01.2025
  • Brought a small, family run business of 25 years into the modern world of social media. Creating informative posts and adverts about the skin care products and ingredients used within them.
  • Improved online customer service skills?
  • Worked in all stages of the production line including filling, labelling and packaging of products, this improved my efficiency, time management and eye for detail.
  • Taking on these responsibilities increased my confidence to take initiative, think creatively in a business setting and make editorial decisions regarding marketing.

Zip Line Instructor / Adventure Team Member

Zip World - Penryhn Quarry
Bethesda, Gwynedd
01.2022 - 06.2023
  • Conducted thorough safety briefings to hundreds of nervous customers daily, balancing a level of personable humour to ease nerves whilst not compromising professionalism and the importance of safetyinformation.
  • Fitted customers with harnesses and other pieces of equipment to an impeccable standard, this required thorough attention to detail to ensure kit was correctly fitted. Assessed as a ‘cross checker’ meaning I was responsible for double checking customers harnesses fitted by my colleagues to ensure they were safe to proceed to the zip lines.
  • Responsible for the safe attachment and removal of customers to/from the Zip Wires, this hugely developed my attention to detail and eye for health and safety as any mistakes could have been fatal.
  • Developed fantastic customer interaction skills. A big part of the job was encouraging and consoling hundreds of people a day of all ages and walks of life with a huge range of emotions before they took on the Zip Line, I found this very rewarding.
  • Clear and concise communication with colleagues during important radio calls when releasing/receiving riders.
  • Carried out daily inspections on the mechanisms of the ziplines, equipment and harnesses to relay to the maintenance team. This was essential for customer and staff safety.
  • Further training in ways to enable individuals with a wide range of accessibility needs to take part in the zip lines, this developed my ability to think outside the box as often procedures would need to be altered to fit individual needs, with the upmost care and dignity being at the forefront of our actions.
  • Worked outside in the often-brutal weather conditions of the Welsh mountains, still delivering exceptional customer experiences even in torrential rain, wind and snow.
  • Successfully worked as part of a large team to ensure the site lived up to its award-winning reputation. In peak season we would receive up to 1000 customers a day[TS1]. [TS1]Dealt with stress and time constraints/management

Activity Leader - Animal Care Team Member

Pennywell Farm
Rattery, Devon
01.2019 - 01.2022
  • Led animal handling experiences, educational activities and talks for visitors of all ages, consistently balancing the welfare of a variety of unpredictable animals with the enjoyment and safety of excited customers. Encouraged people to try new things and helped children and adults to overcome their fears.
  • Drove tractor rides for the public and operated small farm rides, this taught me the importance of health & safety procedures.
  • Undertook a range of daily animal care tasks including mucking out, feeding, grooming, exercising and basic health checks[TS1] . Worked outdoors in all weathers.
  • Delivered a high level of customer service in the site shop and reception, welcoming people to the attraction, giving information, handling queries and complaints, making informative tannoy announcements, using the tills and keeping the shelves well stocked.
  • Worked as a team to ensure visitors had an enjoyable experience, whatever the weather and that the attraction lived up to its award-winning reputation. Successfully communicated with colleagues in peak season when we could receive around 1000 visitors a day[TS2] .[TS1]Responsibility? [TS2]Social skills and plublic engagement

Waitress - Kitchen Assitant

The Brick House
Ashburton, Devon
03.2016 - 01.2019
  • My responsibilities included taking orders, talking to customers, serving food and helping in the kitchen with basic food prep, cleaning etc.
  • It was often a fast-paced environment, and this developed my teamwork and customer service skills.

Education

Foundation Degree in Science - Biological Sciences

University of Plymouth
Plymouth
09.2019 - 06.2020

A-Levels - Psychology, Engligh Language, Philosophy and Ethics

South Dartmoor Community College Sixth Form
Ashburton
09.2017 - 06.2019

GCSEs - 9 GCSE's including English (6/B) and Maths (4/C)

South Dartmoor Community College
Ashburton
09.2012 - 06.2017

Skills

  • Personable and strong team player
  • Health and safety conscious
  • Excellent communication
  • Practical/ hands-on
  • Attention to detail
  • Conscientious
  • Full UK Driving Licence

About Me

I have a deep-rooted love for nature, animals, forests and fungi. Anything based in the outdoors is right up my street! In my spare time you may find me climbing, wild swimming, hiking, foraging or camping. When I’m not outdoors I enjoy expanding my ever growing knowledge for the wonderful world of fungi, going to the gym, knitting, painting, voluntering with my local bat groups, baking and trying new recipes. 

Volunteering

Bat Conservation Trust and Bat Groups

  • Conducted emergence, woodland, field and water-way surveys as well as partaking in ethical trapping and radio tracking nights.
  • Developed my skills in a field conservation setting alongside learning how to map transects, use mist and harp traps and process a range of Bat ID calls using full spectrum/direct sampling and heterodyne bat detectors.
  • Completed bat box checks, further developing ID skills using morphological features whilst handling, as well as collecting and recording relevant biological data.
  • Gained skills in an unfamiliar setting through hands-on mentoring from professionals in the field.


Permaculture Projects

  • Spent 3 months volunteering on permaculture projects in Portugal and Spain.
  • Gained knowledge of permaculture systems, syntropic agriculture, gardening and eco-builds.
  • Developed manual and team-work skills through planting and maintaining of agroforestry sites, constructing vegetable beds and cooking for large groups.


Festival Work

  • Volunteered at Boomtown music festival based within their Theatre office.
  • This was a fantastic opportunity to be involved behind the scenes in the makings of a large event, being a friendly face and helping hand to punters, ensuring the welfare of actors and performers.
  • I was responsible for decorating areas of the site to an impeccable standard and helped the management team with any tasks that needed doing to allow a smooth operation.



Timeline

Production Hand / Social media team

Living Energy Systems
06.2023 - 01.2025

Zip Line Instructor / Adventure Team Member

Zip World - Penryhn Quarry
01.2022 - 06.2023

Foundation Degree in Science - Biological Sciences

University of Plymouth
09.2019 - 06.2020

Activity Leader - Animal Care Team Member

Pennywell Farm
01.2019 - 01.2022

A-Levels - Psychology, Engligh Language, Philosophy and Ethics

South Dartmoor Community College Sixth Form
09.2017 - 06.2019

Waitress - Kitchen Assitant

The Brick House
03.2016 - 01.2019

GCSEs - 9 GCSE's including English (6/B) and Maths (4/C)

South Dartmoor Community College
09.2012 - 06.2017

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