Museum and Visitor Services Assistant

This may be due to the employer reviewing received applications or no longer actively hiring for this role.

Museum and Visitor Services Assistant

Your New Role

Do you have excellent communication and customer care skills with an enthusiasm for museum, history, art or natural history? We have a fantastic opportunity to join us at the D-Day story.

Portsmouth Museums & Visitor Services are responsible for the care of the city’s archives and museum collections and for making them accessible to both residents and visitors. The service operates 6 museum sites – The D-Day Story, Southsea Castle, Charles Dickens’ Birthplace, Cumberland House Natural History Museum, Portsmouth Museum and Art Gallery & Eastney Beam Engine House.

The main purpose of this post is to deliver high standards of customer care and a great welcome for visitors in a safe and inviting environment, thus ensuring high levels of customer satisfaction and repeat visits. You will have sufficient knowledge of museum sites and collections to provide information and promote current and future programmes and the city’s wider cultural offer.

The Museum and Visitor Services Assistant role includes a range of activities including:

1. Manning reception and welcoming visitors
2. General visitor information tasks
3. Retail
4. Taking messages and bookings
5. Recording visitor numbers
6. Assisting with events and activities
7. Installation of exhibitions, previews, and evening meetings

A key part of this role is working at events and functions, which will include some lifting and carrying of tables and chairs and outdoor work. You may also be asked to work at other museum sites as required.

In addition, you will ensure public areas, including toilets, are clean and in good order and maintain a secure environment for collections through implementing current security procedures including security patrols, invigilation of galleries, and regular inventory checks of items on display.

What you'll need to succeed

A team player with excellent customer care skills to welcome and engage customers, you will be able to answer customer queries whether face to face or via telephone. You will need excellent communication skills and conversational skills in a foreign language would be an advantage – French preferred. Good levels of literacy, numeracy, and IT are required. Experience of cash handling and selling services and goods would be an advantage. You will be flexible with a passion for the destination of Portsmouth as well as having an enthusiasm for museums, history, art, or natural history.

Please read the job profile for the full details of this role.

About Portsmouth City Council

What we can offer you:

Portsmouth City Council is a unique organisation, committed to making a difference, and is guided by core values that set who we are as people, what we stand for, and how we act.

Please read the full job profile for further details on the post to ensure your application matches the requirements of the role stated in the 'Who is the Person'. When completing the application form, please thoroughly tailor your application to the 'Who is the Person' points in the profile with the use of examples from your experience. This is important, or you are likely not to be shortlisted.

We are a disability confident employer - committed to ensuring that our recruitment and selection process is inclusive and accessible and welcome applications from all areas of society.

You will need to demonstrate that you have the Right to Work in the UK. No post will be offered without it.

We will email applicants from time to time; please ensure you check e-mail folders as sometimes our e-mails may go into spam/junk folders.

Should you require any support in completing the application form please contact recruit@portsmouthcc.gov.uk or call the recruitment team on 023 92 616800.