Waterside Champion (Café Volunteer - National Waterways Museum, Ellesmere Port)

Canal & River Trust; Ellesmere Port; On-site; GBP 10,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

Join Canal & River Trust as a Café Volunteer and become a part of the team enhancing visitor experiences at the National Waterways Museum. Your role will involve engaging with visitors, providing a friendly front-of-house presence, and assisting in the operations of the café. Enjoy a unique volunteering opportunity surrounded by history while contributing to the upkeep of beautiful waterways.

Benefits

A sense of reward

Experience in a unique environment

The opportunity to help others

A supportive network of colleagues

Qualifications

• Experience in customer service or hospitality is welcome but not required.

Responsibilities

• Welcome and engage visitors and customers.
• Help operate waterways for safe passage for boaters.
• Care for day-to-day operations of the waterways.

Skills

Friendly

Reliable

Good with people

Team player

Job description

As a Waterside Champion, we need your support to be there for our customers. The millions of visitors to our waterways, museums, and attractions are intrigued by our wonderful 200-year-old network. Champions such as our Café Volunteers facilitate a great experience for all.

You will be part of the team keeping our nation's heritage alive by helping in our bustling, vibrant café offering seasonal fayre, visited by regular customers as well as people from all over the UK and overseas. You'll play a key role supporting our team as a friendly and enthusiastic front-of-house presence or behind the scenes in a professional kitchen setting. You can help raise vital funds for the upkeep and care of the heritage around you, and enjoy meeting and chatting with many new faces every day.

Located on the banks of the Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal, with extensive indoor displays and historic buildings, the Museum is a fantastic place to volunteer, where time slows down and history comes to life. The National Waterways Museum at Ellesmere Port features a collection of boats, buildings, outdoor spaces, and more. Join the friendly, dedicated, and knowledgeable team at this prestigious visitor attraction, housed in historic Grade II listed buildings with beautiful grounds. Your support as a Café Volunteer will help welcome, delight, and engage visitors, creating lasting memories and contributing to an exceptional visitor experience.

Previous experience is not required, although experience in customer service or hospitality is welcome. This is an ongoing role, typically volunteering between 10 am to 4 pm, with flexibility to suit your availability. Our busiest periods are during holidays and summer months.

Why we want you

As a Waterside Champion, your support helps provide a memorable experience for visitors exploring our waterways, museums, and attractions. Our Champions assist along towpaths at Welcome Stations, demonstrate collections at museums, care for and operate swing and lift bridges supporting passing boaters, and facilitate safe passage through tunnels when needed.

Additional roles include Rangers, Lock Keepers, Explorers, Waterside Champions, and Youth Engagement roles, which complement the core volunteer activities.

What you will be doing

• Representing the Trust to welcome and engage visitors, customers, and local people
• Volunteering in a team to care for the day-to-day operation of the waterways
• Operating key parts of the waterways to ensure safe passage by boaters and engaging with the public about them
• Declaring any unspent convictions during registration and participating in risk assessments as needed

The skills you need

• Friendly
• Reliable
• Good with people
• Team player

What's in it for you

• A sense of reward
• Experience in a unique environment
• The opportunity to help others
• A supportive network of colleagues