Archives Assistant Apprentice - Level 3

Derbyshire County Council; East Midlands; On-site; GBP 12,000 - 16,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous annual leave

Student discounts

Cycle to Work

Leisure centre discounts

Health and exercise sessions

Job summary

Derbyshire County Council invites applications for an Archive Assistant Apprentice - Level 3. You will work in the archives team, assisting researchers, answering queries, and supporting archival cataloguing and outreach activities.

The role offers practical learning in history preservation, public engagement, and social media promotion, with on-the-job training and supervision from experienced archivists. The apprenticeship is based in Derbyshire.

Qualifications

• GCSEs at C/4 or above including Maths and English.
• Interest in history and helping the public.

Responsibilities

• Assist in the archive searchroom, helping researchers.
• Answer telephone and email enquiries.
• Help archivists catalogue records.
• Promote the Record Office via social media and events.

Skills

Customer service

Teamwork

Communication

Attention to detail

Education

GCSEs including Maths & English (Grade C/4 or above)

Job description

Closing date: 01 November 2026

We are excited to welcome an Archive Assistant Apprentice - Level 3 in our team! You’ll be joining a team that cares for the historical records of Derbyshire which include maps, photographs, oral histories and written documents that date back 900 years.

What You’ll Be Doing

• Working in the archive searchroom, helping customers who are doing historical research
• Answering telephone and email enquiries
• Helping the archivists to catalogue historical records
• Promoting the Record Office by posting to social media, helping with events and exhibitions.

This job is very varied. One day you might be working in the archive searchroom helping to answer in-person questions and email enquiries. You never know what questions are going to be asked - people can be researching a person, a place or a topic, and you’re there to help them find their answers.

On another day you might be helping an archivist to catalogue an archive collection, writing on reference numbers and packaging the documents so that they can be available to researchers. Or you may be helping us to catalogue more modern, digital archives. You might also spend some time choosing interesting items that you think would work well on social media and writing the social media posts, or helping to prepare a school pack, exhibition or event.

Whatever you’re doing, there will be an experienced team around you to provide support as you learn.

What We're Looking For

You can be an apprentice at any age over 16. We’re looking for someone who will enjoy dealing with the public and helping people. You will like working in a team but are also happy working alone. You will be interested in history, be good at problem solving and enjoy learning new things every day. You will be responsible. Attention to detail is very important in this job, so you will be thorough when you do a task and make sure you follow instructions. You will be a good at communicating with different audiences, for instance helping an elderly person over the phone, writing formal emails and producing snappy social media posts.

You'll need:

• 5 GCSEs at grade C/grade 4 or above, including maths and English

Great Employee Benefits

• Generous annual leave scheme
• Access to student discounts
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Discounts at selected county leisure centres
• Free online health and exercise sessions
• …and much more!

If you are a care experience individual, you may be eligible for a care leaving bursary payment of up to £3,000 throughout the period of the apprenticeship.

You can join useful workshops to help your prepare your application and gain helpful interview skills here: Careers workshops - Derbyshire County Council. You can also access free help through the national career service: Get relevant careers advice | National Careers Service.