Collections & House Manager

National Trust; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 50,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension scheme

Free entry to NT places for you and a/

Rental deposit loan

Season ticket loan

EV car lease scheme

Perks at work discounts

Holiday allowance

Flexible working

Employee assistance programme

Free parking

Job summary

National Trust’s Anglesey Abbey in Cambridge is seeking a Collections and House Manager on a fixed-term basis. You will lead the House & Collections teams, oversee daily opening, and ensure exceptional visitor experiences while upholding conservation and compliance across the historic property.

You’ll drive inclusive service, engage diverse audiences with interpretation, and supervise around 170 volunteers, shaping volunteering to be flexible and inclusive.

Qualifications

• Experience in achieving high standards of presentation, customer care, compliance and collections management in a historic setting.
• Aware of developments and approved practices in the heritage sector in visitor engagement, innovation and access.
• Keen to promote inclusivity and diversity in the interpretation and presentation of history.

Responsibilities

• Work with the leadership team to ensure operational efficiency, championing conservation and cultural heritage, working flexibly with other departments to achieve shared goals including programming activities.
• Manage the Collections and House team including House & Collections Officers and Collections Assistants.
• Support them to care for the collections, manage the daily opening of the house, provide a consistently excellent experience for visitors and to achieve outstanding standards in conservation, presentation and compliance.
• Lead by example, instil a culture of excellent and inclusive service, engaging all kinds of people with conservation, interpretation and the values of the Trust.
• Have overall responsibility for approximately a hundred and seventy volunteers, developing their skills and providing an indoor volunteering experience for them that’s as flexible and inclusive as possible.
• Involve in groundbreaking work for Anglesey Abbey including the Collections Workbook and Representation Plan to keep the historic house and collections cared for and relevant to diverse audiences.

Skills

Presentation standards

Customer care

Compliance

Collections management

Visitor engagement

Inclusivity

Resilience

People management

Job description

Summary

We’re looking for someone who cares deeply about achieving high standards and helping to make beauty and history accessible to all, to join us as a Collections and House Manager at Anglesey Abbey in Cambridgeshire.

This is a fixed term contract due to end when the postholder returns to the role. At this point we cannot confirm exactly how long this contract will last, but it is unlikely to be more than 12 months.

What It's Like To Work Here

This Jacobean-style house with its colourful gardens and working watermill is one of our largest properties. Many roles at Anglesey Abbey are customer facing, with all the teams working hard to maintain the superb standards of service. This is an opportunity to make a real difference within an ever-evolving environment where your ideas and input will be valued.

What You’ll Be Doing

You’ll work with the leadership team to ensure operational efficiency, championing conservation and cultural heritage, working flexibly with other departments to achieve shared goals including programming activities.

You’ll manage the Collections and House team including our House & Collections Officers and Collections Assistants. You’ll support them to care for the collections, manage the daily opening of the house, provide a consistently excellent experience for visitors and to achieve outstanding standards in conservation, presentation and compliance.

Leading by example, you’ll instil a culture of excellent and inclusive service, engaging all kinds of people with conservation, interpretation and the values of the Trust.

You’ll have overall responsibility for approximately a hundred and seventy volunteers, developing their skills and providing an indoor volunteering experience for them that’s as flexible and inclusive as possible.

In addition, you will be involved in some groundbreaking and exciting pieces of work for Anglesey Abbey including the Collections Workbook and Representation Plan, both of which will ensure that our historic house and collections remain cared for and relevant to our growing and diverse audiences.

Who We’re Looking For

We’d love to hear from you if you’re:

• experienced in achieving high standards of presentation, customer care, compliance and collections management in a historic setting
• aware of current developments and approved practices in the heritage sector in the field of visitor engagement, innovation and access
• keen to promote inclusivity and diversity in the interpretation and presentation of history
• someone who can remain resilient and positive while managing colleagues, changes and challenges
• able to build strong and effective working relationships with diverse people
• experienced in managing people and achieving goals through others

The package

The National Trust has the motto For everyone, for ever at its heart. We’re working hard to create an inclusive culture, where everyone feels they belong. It’s important that our people reflect and represent the diversity of the communities and audiences we serve. We welcome and value difference, so when we say we’re for everyone, we want everyone to be welcome in our teams too.

• Substantial pension scheme of up to 10% basic salary
• Free entry to National Trust places for you, a guest and your children (under 18)
• Rental deposit loan scheme
• Season ticket loan
• EV car lease scheme (for roles that meet the salary criteria)
• Perks at work discounts such as gym memberships, shopping discount codes, cinema discounts
• Holiday allowance up to 32 days relating to length of service, plus holiday purchase scheme, subject to meeting minimum criteria.
• Flexible working whenever possible
• Employee assistance programme
• Free parking at most Trust places

National Trust place

Anglesey Abbey, Quy Road, Cambridge, CB25 9EJ

Documents

Collections & House Manager - Grade 7 - Jan 2023.pdf

Requirements

Compliance.Eligibility to Work in the UK

Closing Date

18 October 2026

Interviews

30 October 2026

Equal Opportunities Statement

The National Trust celebrates diversity and is committed to creating a fair and equal society, free from discrimination. You can read more about our commitment to inclusion and diversity here.

Safeguarding Statement

The National Trust is committed to a safe recruitment processes to help the organisation attract and appoint the right staff/volunteer for the role and responsibilities as set out in the vacancy advert. We will not accept applicants who are not suitable to work with children, young people or adults at risk. If you have any questions around your suitability for this vacancy, please contact the people service centre.