Job Introduction
Role Purpose
Are you passionate about archaeology, science, and the natural world? Do you thrive in a dynamic and inspiring environment where innovation meets heritage? Hengistbury Head Visitor Centre is seeking an enthusiastic Assistant Curator to join our curatorial team. You will play a pivotal role in preserving, interpreting, and showcasing our extraordinary collection of over 20,000 archaeological and natural science artefacts, representing over 12,500 years of human history.
With an audience of more than 120,000 annual museum visitors, you will contribute to authentic and engaging storytelling through exhibitions that captivate and educate.
Main Responsibilities
- Collate, record and maintain a digitised catalogue of artefacts and organise the storage of the collections and archives.
- Conduct a rolling programme of digitisation and 3D modelling of collections.
- Train volunteers and placement students in the handling, documentation, and digitisation of our collections.
- Work with the Curator to explore grant funding opportunities to further digitise and make accessible our collections.
We are seeking someone with the following qualifications/experience:
- Postgraduate qualification in Cultural Heritage Studies, Postgraduate qualification in archaeology or archaeological science with a human osteology component or equivalent experience
- Demonstrable experience of documentation of museum collections, including audits to SPECTRUM Standards
- Experience of collection-based research
The Ideal Candidate
We are looking for a candidate with exceptional problem-solving skills, initiative, and a dynamic attitude—someone who is ready to lead and innovate as part of a team dedicated to excellence. You will not only help manage our treasured museum collections but also champion innovative business approaches that blend heritage, science, and public engagement in creative and impactful ways.
We want someone who can foster inclusivity and collaboration across our site but also within local communities and who takes pride in connecting people with history and nature. If you are ready to make a difference and contribute to one of the region’s most cherished sites, we want to hear from you! Join us in our mission to connect communities of the past, present, and future through positive curation and public engagement.
About BCP Council
BCP Council provides services to a diverse community of 400,000 residents and employs more than 5,000 people. Our area includes over 15 miles of beautiful world-renowned coastline. We can offer career defining roles to transform and improve services. By working with us, you can help deliver a vision of a thriving, word-class, prosperous and inclusive place for generations to come.
Our Benefits
We offer an excellent benefits package for further details see here
As a result of the creation of BCP Council in 2019, we are working on simplifying our terms and conditions of service and will be creating a single pay structure which is to be applicable for all employees. It is important to us that we offer benefits that our colleagues value as part of their total employment package and we are reviewing these to make sure we have it right. We have been in a process of collective bargaining since 2019 and have positively worked forward to reach an agreed position with the unions for the new contractual offer. This has taken longer than we hoped and therefore we are having to consider all alternative avenues available to enable us to remove inequality in the organisation as a result of bringing together 3 councils.
We are in the process of establishing a timescale for implementation, and all colleagues joining us will be included in these changes. We want to reassure everyone that whichever route is taken to reach the new terms and conditions, we can honour continuous service and there will not be any job reduction as a result of the implementation of Pay and Reward. If you have any questions at all about this process, please feel free to raise this with the hiring manager.
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