Access Control Assistant

British Museum; Greater London; On-site; GBP 29,000 - 36,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free exhibition entry

Civil Service Pension Scheme

25 days' annual leave

Peer support and allyship networks

Learning and development opportunities

Employee Assistance Programme

Enhanced parental leave

Support for carers

Job summary

The British Museum is seeking an organised Access Control Assistant to help safeguard one of the world’s most visited institutions. You will manage security passes, keys and access permissions, acting as the central contact for access procedures while delivering high standards of customer service.

This role requires strong administration skills, stakeholder engagement and IT competence, with a focus on security, health and safety, and collaboration across teams to support exhibitions and events.

Qualifications

• Experience in a busy administrative environment with strong organisational skills and attention to detail.
• Excellent written and spoken English with ability to engage stakeholders at all levels.
• Strong IT skills, including databases and Microsoft Office applications.
• Ability to follow processes with sound judgement and initiative, with knowledge of security principles, Health and Safety and Fire Regulations.
• Excellent customer service, integrity and collaborative approach.
• Experience with security databases and similar roles in busy tourism, cultural or heritage environments is advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Deliver an efficient access control service including issuing, renewing and revoking security passes and permissions.
• Serve as main point of contact for staff, contractors and visitors on access procedures.
• Manage the Museum's electronic access control systems, databases and key management; keep records up to date.
• Carry out verification, accreditation and contractor induction to ensure compliance with safety procedures.
• Undertake Health and Safety responsibilities, including checks and addressing concerns.
• Support resolution of security issues and contribute to process improvements.

Skills

Organisational skills

English communication

IT skills

Security principles

Customer service

Stakeholder engagement

Tools

Security databases

MS Office

Job description

*Please note that the working pattern for this position is 4 days on, 4 days off, including weekends and bank holidays. Shifts are 12 hours, working from 06:30 - 18:30 or 09:30 - 21:30 rotationally.

About the role

The British Museum is seeking an organised and proactive Access Control Assistant to help maintain the safety and security of one of the world's most visited cultural institutions. Acting as a central point of contact for access control procedures, you will support colleagues, contractors and visitors by managing security passes, keys, permits and access permissions across the Museum.

This is a varied role requiring excellent administration skills, sound judgement and the confidence to engage with stakeholders at all levels. Working closely with internal teams and external partners, you will ensure that access control procedures are applied consistently, professionally and in the best interests of the Museum while maintaining exceptional levels of customer service.

The successful candidate will thrive in a busy operational environment, balancing security requirements with practical business needs and helping to support the delivery of exhibitions, events and wider Museum activities

About you

• Experience working in a busy administrative environment, with strong organisational skills and excellent attention to detail.
• Confident communicator, with excellent written and spoken English, able to build effective working relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, including senior colleagues.
• Strong IT skills, including experience using databases and Microsoft Office applications.
• Ability to follow processes accurately while exercising sound judgement and initiative when responding to issues or changing priorities with good knowledge of security principles, basic Health and Safety and Fire Regulations.
• Excellent customer service skills, integrity and a collaborative approach to working with colleagues, contractors and visitors.
• Experience with security databases and working in a similar role in a busy tourism, cultural or heritage organisation is advantageous but not essential.

Key areas of responsibility

• Deliver an efficient and responsive access control service, including issuing, renewing and revoking security passes and access permissions.
• Act as the main point of contact for staff, contractors and visitors on access control procedures, providing guidance and support.
• Manage the Museum's electronic access control systems, databases and key management processes, ensuring records remain accurate and up to date.
• Carry out required verification, accreditation and contractor induction processes to ensure compliance with security, health and safety and fire procedures.
• Proactively undertake Health and Safety responsibilities, including Health & Safety checks and addressing any related concerns.
• Support the resolution of operational security issues and contribute to the continuous improvement of access control processes and services.

The Masterplan

The British Museum is undertaking its biggest transformation since its founding nearly 300 years ago. This physical and intellectual transformation includes large scale building and gallery transformation, new ways of connecting with audiences and different ways of working. As we look towards this exciting future, we remain guided by the words of our founder Hans Sloane - who dreamed of a museum connecting all arts and sciences, which would be accessible to everyone, everywhere.

Benefits

At the British Museum, we believe our people are at the heart of everything we do and have designed a benefits package that goes beyond the ordinary. Our full list of benefits can be found here, but we’ve outlined some highlights below:

• Free exhibition entry for you and guests, exclusive private views, ICOM and reciprocal museum access.
• Civil Service Pension Scheme defined benefit with considerable employer contribution.
• 25 days' annual leave plus bank holidays and 2.5 privilege days (and +5 days after 10 years).
• Peer support and allyship with five diversity networks for community.
• Learning and development through courses, mentoring and Athena as well as support for professional qualifications.
• Employee Assistance Programme available 24/7 for counselling, wellbeing support and more.
• Enhanced parental leave including maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave.
• Support for carers through Employers for Carers.

Values

Our values drive everything we do, from how we handle our objects to how we work in our team to fostering a culture where everyone feels heard and empowered:

• Care Deeply
• Embrace the Unknown
• Spark Curiosity
• Value Many Voices

These are a core part of how we recruit. Throughout the application, interview and selection process, we look for examples of how candidates demonstrate these behaviours in their own work and experiences. We encourage you to familiarise yourself with our values and reflect them in your application.

Additional information

If you have any additional needs that we should be aware of to support you with your application, please provide details to [e-mail] .

Internal Applicants

We welcome internal applicants regardless of background, department or length of service but encourage you to let your manager know before applying.

HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS)

The Museum also adheres to the HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) for pre-employment screening of Civil Servants.

Vacancy Type Permanent Contract length Permanent Working Pattern Full Time Is hybrid working available? No Location Bloomsbury, London Salary £32,447 per annum Application Deadline Sunday, November 8, 2026 Job Profile Job Profile document
Role Summary