The course ended with us producing the best tasting loaf of bread I had ever eaten. Whilst not making many loaves of bread since, I have kept the starter going. Benign neglect doesn't seem to have affected it's potency as each time I feed the starter it roars back to life.

As suggested by Gabriella, I keep three generations of starter sitting in the fridge and when I feed it, which is every four to six weeks, I rejuvenate the three containers. With the amount of starter I keep in the fridge experience has shown me that the containers (with lids) need to be 400-500ml capacity. For cleaning it is best if a hand easily fits inside and there is no inside lip. I have tried several types of containers and presently am using plastic containers with lids.

Feeding requires taking 4 parts water, 4 parts flour and 1 part 'old' starter and thoroughly mixing together then leave in a warm spot for 8-12 hours. At the end of this time the mixture should look alive; it should have expanded (at least doubled) and, rather than paste like when first mixed, be light, fluffy and bubbly in texture.

Do this at least three times to completely rejuvenate the starter. After a batch is used to make the next generation it can be stored in the fridge. The three generations is a safety measure in case a batch becomes contaminated. Keeping the last generation and the one before allows falling back. It is useful to have some way of knowing which generation you are using.

One way to keep track of the generations is to mark the containers 1, 2 and 3. Container 3 will always be the youngest, 1 the oldest. Make first lot of starter in Container 1 using the starter you have been given or if there are already three generations in the fridge starter from Container 3.

The amount of starter needed to make a loaf of bread is proportionate to the weight of bread dough required. When gearing up to make bread the amount of starter needed can be calculated from the recipe being used. If making bread every day enough starter from that being used for making today's bread needs to be set aside and fed for tomorrow's bread making. 

Easy.