Support
The London Canal Museum is a registered charity and a registered museum run entirely by volunteers, to professional standards. We are always looking out for new people with a variety of skills. People with specific skills to offer are espcially welcome. The range of tasks in running a museum is very varied. Painting and decorating is as much needed in a museum as in any other building, but of course we also have work on collection care, customer services, project management, marketing, and all sorts of day to day tasks.
We need volunteers for all sorts of things:
In this section we list vacancies for volunteer positions which we are currently seeking to fill. Please remember that all positions are unpaid - do not apply if you are looking for a salary.
Hours are flexible, with some weekday and weekend working necessary. The job is to teach our volunteers, individually or in small groups, practical and other skills such as:
We are looking for people to welcome our visitors, especially those who are likely to be lmedium and long term volunteers. The work is to staff the museum and museum shop, opening up, collecting admission charges, and selling in the shop. Good communications skills are needed as is smart appearance and a good telephone manner for this role more than any other is about presenting a public face. Desk staff also sort incoming mail and field telephone calls on all manner of subjects - messages are taken and passed to the appropriate person. Front of house staff need to be able to use a simple computer system and handle cash accurately, and to learn a few essential procedures for operation of building services. Training will be given. Hours are flexible, some people can only work at weekends, others only on certain weekdays - others only for parts of days - we need a range of people for flexibility. There is no minimum commitment but we would ideally like to hear from people who can offer one day per week (hours approximately 0945 to 1645) or an equivalent (e.g. two mornings per week). This role is not suitable for people who are only available for a few weeks.
Word 97 Job description - front of house(Microsoft Word V7 file)
A front-of-house person to take care of groups when they visit the museum, mainly focussed on adult groups. Involves meeting, greeting, providing refreshments, giving advice to customers, and some interpretation. Groups come on all days of the week, and whilst there are a number of staff able to help, we need an additional person to supplement them, especially when larger groups are expected. Friendly customer relationship skills, especially with older visitors, are a must for this position. Times are very variable. We don't expect you to always be available for every group, but to be a person our Groups Co-ordinator (who deals with sales and customer care administration before they visit) can call upon some of the time to be a welcoming presence during the actual visit. An interest in industrial history and the ability to communicate with people, and give a short talk to a group (some training provided) , would be a great advantage. If you can serve coffee and talk about history at the same time, you could be the person we want to talk to!
The shop stock administrator needs to be able to come in half a day every week regularly - the day is flexible (not Mondays). You will need to be computer literate and methodical. The job is to update our shop computer system with all the shop stock that has been delivered and then to add it to the shop itself. You will also be able to assist with ordering new stock and stock checking. It is
A practical person is needed to help with minor maintenance tasks such as small scale painting, minor repairs, a little woodwork, and similar practical tasks. Hours will be sporadic and flexible, equivalent to one or two days per month.
We attend several outdoor events each summer and the number could be expanded. The purpose of these stands is to publisise the museum and also sell shop stock. The organiser needs to, in liaison with others, arrange stock listing and packing, publicity material, arrange the stand itself, staffing, and be there on the day. He or she needs also to arrange transport for the stand etc - sometimes this will be by boat.
We are looking for someone to assist our Curator/Archivist with care of the collection. Ideally this would suit someone wishing to get experience of this type of work or with a background in museum collection care. A day or half day per week, midweek, is probably appropriate but if you are interested in this sphere please get in touch and let us have a phone number so that we can discuss the flexible options with you.
The role of the sponsorship co-ordinator is a new one. We are looking for someone to develop relationships with local business organisations or those with a special interest in the waterways, and to obtain sponsorship from them for temporary exhibitions, the tug, special events etc. Good communications skills and the ability to project a professional image to business people are essential.
Word 97 Job description - sponsorship(Microsoft Word V7 file)
Send us an e-mail (preferably with your CV attached). Or leave a telephone message and/or fax on our volunteering line 07092 357346. If you want to talk to us before applying, leave a phone number.
