Museum Volunteers Clock Up 865 Hours of Support

Volunteers who work on a range of activities in the city council’s museums and galleries service have been thanked for their efforts at special reception.

In 2017, 34 individuals contributed a total of 865 hours of support in areas such as exhibitions, collections, marketing and education, working alongside the service’s own staff. Many students in particular have gained valuable experience and have acknowledged this as being a significant factor in securing a job.

At Tower House last Wednesday, volunteers were invited to a celebration event in recognition of their hard work. It was also a chance to network with other volunteers and museums and galleries staff.

Chairman of the council’s Community Committee, Cllr Neil Baker, said: “We have a wide selection of volunteering opportunities within the museums service and are always happy to welcome new people.

“You may want to get into a career in museums, or just have an interest in the exhibits we look after and the projects we run. Whichever it is, you’ll learn new skills and meet new people, and contribute to a service that welcomes thousands of visitors a year.”

Volunteers have the opportunity to work across the following areas:
Events – assist in running activities and manning explorer and information points, as well as getting hands-on with tasks to help and inspire visitors
Exhibitions – assist with the unpacking, mirror plating, display hanging, preparation of captions and interpretation, taking down, packing and clearing up
Learning resources – researching links with the national curriculum or the council’s strategic policies that help produce museum activities and events that will help us reach new audiences
Artefact archiving and database entry – gain experience in cataloguing artefacts onto a computerised database and improving existing data, including training in safe handling procedures
Collections research – researching the collections in order to increase knowledge of the artefacts, and assist in answering public enquiries about the collection
Digital scanning and photography of artefacts – taking digital images of artefacts with cameras and scanners for use on the museum database and for sale

 

For more information and an application form, email craig.bowen@canterbury.gov.uk.

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Artefacts in exhibition case The Beaney Museum

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