Student Casual - Activity Support Assistant - Public and Cultural Engagement - External Relatio[...]

University of Birmingham; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 10,000 - 40,000; Part time

Job summary

An established institution is seeking enthusiastic individuals to support public engagement activities at a vibrant civic facility. This role involves welcoming visitors, assisting with events, and helping to create an inclusive atmosphere for community interaction. The position offers a unique opportunity to contribute to the university's mission of fostering public engagement and cultural exchange. If you are passionate about connecting with diverse audiences and enjoy a dynamic work environment, this role is perfect for you. Join a team that values innovation and collaboration while making a positive impact in the community.

Benefits

Holiday Entitlement

Access to Campus Facilities

Supportive Work Environment

Qualifications

• Experience working in a public-facing role, engaging with diverse audiences.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with a focus on stakeholder engagement.

Responsibilities

• Assist with setup and delivery of events, ensuring smooth operations.
• Provide a warm welcome and support for visitors and participants.

Skills

Communication Skills

Interpersonal Skills

Event Management

IT Proficiency (Microsoft Office)

Education

Experience in Public Engagement

Experience in Event Coordination

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft PowerPoint

Microsoft Outlook

Microsoft Teams

Job description

Position Details

School or Department: External Relations

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Grade: 4

Positions available: 2

Hourly rate: £14.51+ holiday entitlement

Casual contract from: 26/5/25

Closing date: 14/5/25

This vacancy is only open for University of Birmingham students. Please be aware that the vacancy may be taken down early dependent on the number of applications received.

Our offer to you

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham

Background

The University of Birmingham (UoB) is one of the UK’s first civic universities. The Exchange, is a civic-facing facility in Centenary Square in the city centre and a focus for public and cultural engagement activities. The Exchange brings together the University’s research, teaching and networks to create a place of curiosity, celebration, collaboration and change. Through free public exhibitions and community engagement programmes our ambition is to enable people from the city and wider region to get involved in the University’s work to address the complex challenges of our time. In 2024 the theme of our main Public Programme is Artificial Intelligence. The Exchange is located in the former Headquarters of Birmingham Municipal Bank, built in 1933. We actively celebrate the heritage of this unique place.

Role Summary

This role will support the Public Programme team in the work they do to engage wide public audiences in the work of the University of Birmingham at The Exchange. This role will focus mainly on visitor welcome, preparation, delivery and evaluation of events and activities.

The role may include weekend and evening work and will be on an occasional basis in response to need.

Main Duties

• Work with the Public Programmes Team and the Exchange Operational Team on the setup and delivery of events.
• Provide a warm and friendly welcome and be a point of contact for visitors, families, speakers, artists, community groups as well as freelancers and academics running events.
• Carry out participation / evaluation questionnaires with attendees.
• Assist with delivery of engagement activities for a wide variety of audiences.
• Provide a range of administrative and practical duties to ensure events run smoothly.
• Co-ordinate booking sheets and maintain attendee logs using agreed systems.
• Develop ideas for activities and help deliver them.
• Organise materials and set out and replenish items.
• Creating posters signage, signposting visitors, and encouraging visitors to participate in future activities.
• Assist with welfare and access requirements.
• Feed into future programming and projects
• Ensure that all duties comply with the Health and Safety, Data Protection Act and other legislation.
• Identify and report any health and safety/operational concerns.
• To undertake any such duties as mayreasonably be required by the project team.

Person Specification

• To be positive, enthusiastic, friendly and to enjoy meeting and talking to people.
• Experience of working in public facing capacity on events with communities and the public.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with strong listening ability.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with an ability to engage a wide range of internal and external stakeholders.
• Enthusiastic to explain the work and significance of the University of Birmingham to a wide range of audiences.
• Ability to work effectively across different teams.
• Experience of self-management and administration within a busy and evolving environment
• An active interest in how Universities engage with public audiences
• Able to demonstrate energy, determination, and resilience
• Able to demonstrate the External Relations Values and Behaviour (innovative, responsible, collaborative, open and ambitious)
• Confident using IT, primarily Microsoft Word, Powerpoint, Outlook and Teams
• Ability to think identify health and safety/operational concerns

For any other enquiries regarding this role, please email: [e-mail].