Heritage Hub Host (Visitor Centre)

We are looking for warm, friendly, and approachable volunteers to welcome our visitors and highlight our history. You will bring Staunton’s history to life by delivering ‘walk and talks’ to the public and promoting our new facilities, such as the exhibition space, Staunton Explorer app and the Memory Bank oral history project.

Typical tasks and duties:

• Greet our visitors and welcome them to the Visitor Centre.
• Draw the visitors’ attention to the exhibition space.
• Give introductions or more in-depth info about park & history.
• Talk to visitors about previous or upcoming exhibitions, raising awareness of the volunteer research and oral history team and how one might get involved, e.g. the Memory Bank.
• Deliver ‘Walk & Talks’ to the public as directed (after appropriate preparation).
• Encourage visitors complete a visitor survey to gain feedback.
• Supervise visitors in relation to health and safety. Raising minor issues with visitors directly and referring any escalating problems to a member of staff.
• Assist staff in the case of an emergency, such as a fire, under the direction of staff.

N.B. All subject to COVID restrictions at the time. Will involve social distancing, some mask wearing and will be mostly based outside.

Skills

Skills and knowledge:

• Patient, friendly, polite. Able to communicate well with people of different ages and backgrounds.
• An interest in history and heritage, museums/exhibitions, and local community.
• A willingness to learn basic info about Staunton Country Park, particularly its history, but also about its landscape and facilities.
• Reliable, punctual and presentable for volunteer shifts.
• Happy to run small group talks and walk short to medium distances (as part of Walk & Talks).

Experience and training:

No formal qualifications are required. You will need to have enthusiasm for the Park and be able to demonstrate this enthusiasm to visitors in a polite and friendly manner. You will need to be willing to undergo required training, online or in person, which maybe outside your normal volunteering hours. You will need to be able to use your initiative to carry out the above duties with minimal direction on a day-to-day basis, after initial induction and training (where appropriate). There will be a member of staff of duty who will be inside the Visitors Centre, but (depending on COVID restrictions) you will work mostly on your own initiative outside delivering information/talks/surveys to visitors in the courtyard. You may be asked to cover provide cover for a short staff lunch break.

Hours/days: Shifts to be in 3 (or 3.5-hour including a lunch break), Example times: 10:30am/11am-2/2:30pm.

Commitment: One shift weekly or fortnightly can be arranged.