Volunteer Opportunity: Conservation Cleaning

Purpose of role

We are seeking hardworking and conscientious volunteers to join our team, to assist us with conservation cleaning inside the Royal Pavilion and Brighton Museum and Art Gallery.

Caring for our historic buildings is at the core of the responsibilities for the conservation team and Brighton & Hove Museums as a whole. The foundation of that care begins with the most basic conservation housekeeping and collections care, namely the removal of potentially harmful dust. Every day, we work to clean and preserve our buildings and the precious collections housed inside through dusting, vacuuming, brushing and removing debris and dust.

We are looking to fill 8 shifts over two days a week – the maximum that one volunteer would be considered for is two shifts a week, meaning we are looking for between 4 and 8 volunteers at this time.

This placement would run for 6 months.

The shifts would be:
Monday 8:00-11:00 in Brighton Museum & Art Gallery
Tuesday 8:00-11:00 in the Royal Pavilion

Task

The tasks between the two sites would be largely similar, and the complexity would increase throughout the time period, with training and guidance provided from the conservation team. The initial level of tasks would include: Vacuuming floors; cleaning glass display cases; dusting flat surfaces including historic furniture; and cleaning of lesser-gone areas to reduce the level of dust present in our buildings.

After training and observation, there would be the opportunity to progress to cleaning more complex historic objects and surfaces in detail, allowing an up-close view of Brighton & Hove Museums that few have seen.

Benefits of role

Support: As a volunteer you will be supported by the museum’s dedicated Volunteer Coordinator and staff within the Conservation Team.
Experience: The opportunity will provide valuable and competitive skills to the individual and proven experience of the museum & heritage sector.
Benefits: As a volunteer at Brighton & Hove Museums you will be entitled to the same benefits as staff, including discounts in the shops/cafes, and travel expenses as a volunteer within a reasonable distance from the Royal Pavilion estate.
Reference: We are more than happy to provide a reference on request for any future job applications.

Personal qualities and requirements

As a volunteer, you would ideally:

• Possess excellent attention to detail
• Enjoy repetitive, meticulous tasks
• Enjoy the satisfaction of cleaning to a high standard
• Enjoy and be fit for physical activity
• Focus on a task without getting distracted
• Be open to learning a new way to dust and clean, from a conservation perspective
• Be goal-oriented and motivated to work to deadlines
• Be punctual
• Be fit to work in dusty conditions
• PPE will be provided, but this role will not be suitable for those with respiratory conditions or allergies to dust and mould

If you would like to express an interest

If you are interested, please download the Volunteer Expression of Interest form and send to nick.kay@rpmt.org.uk

Closing date: Friday 25 April

Queries:

Telephone: 01273 071354
Email: nick.kay@rpmt.org.uk