Salary: Band 3 - £20,812 - £21,205 p.a. (approx £10.78 per hour)
Seasonal posts
Post 2 Southsea Castle and Float:
27 th May to 10 th September, 16 weeks. 15 Hours per week.
Saturday and Sunday: 09.30 - 17.30, 30 minutes unpaid lunch.
Primarily working at Southsea Castle, but also working at other museum sites.
Post 3 Cumberland House Natural History Museum and Float:
15th April to 29th October, 29 weeks. 13 Hours per week.
Saturday and Sunday: 10.00 - 17.00, 30 minutes unpaid lunch.
Primarily working at Cumberland House, but also working at other museum sites.
Post 5 Cumberland House Natural History Museum:
20 th July to 2nd September, 7 weeks. 21 Hours per week.
Thursday; Friday and Saturday: 09.30 - 17.00, 30 minutes unpaid lunch.
Working at Cumberland House.
The Service
Portsmouth Museums & Visitor Services are responsible for the care of the city’s archives and museum collections – comprising some 500,000 items that document the history and culture of the city – 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 Engines. A range of audience development initiatives ensure that people from communities across the city and beyond have access to and are able to benefit from the collections we hold. We are currently further developing our family friendly offer across our sites.
In addition the service also operates the Visitor Information Service for the destination with stand-alone points at the Hard and within The D-Day Story and Portsmouth Museum and Art Gallery.
As a service we take pride in our work by valuing others, focusing on what's important so that we make a real and positive difference.
What is the Job?
The main purpose of this post is to deliver high standards of customer care – a safe and inviting environment for all visitors – thus ensuring high levels of customer satisfaction and repeat visits.
You will provide a great welcome for visitors and have sufficient knowledge of museum sites and collections to provide information and promote current and future programmes and the city’s wider cultural offer.
As part of the front-of-house team you will ensure public areas, including toilets, are clean, tidy and in good order. In addition you will 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.
The Museum and Visitor Services Assistant role includes a range of other activities including: reception and welcoming visitors, general Visitor Information tasks, retail, taking messages and bookings, recording visitor numbers, assisting with events and activities, installation of exhibitions, previews and evening meetings.
You may be required to work at events and functions, which will include some lifting and carrying of tables and chairs etc. and outdoor work.
The role may also include working and serving in the Portsmouth Museum café, preparing food and drinks and taking orders and serving customers.
You will be expected to undertake all essential PCC staff training and will need to ensure that all PCC Policies are adhered e.g. Health and Safety and Equal Opportunities policies.
You may be asked to carry out any other duties commensurate with the post and work at any museum site as required.
Who is the Person?
You need :
- Excellent customer care skills to welcome and engage the customer and answer queries whether they be face to face or on the telephone
- In addition to excellent communication skills in English, conversational skills in a foreign language would be an advantage – French preferred
- Excellent team player to fit into the current team and help out other team members as required
- Good levels of literacy, numeracy and IT skills.
- Experience of cash handling and ability to sell services and goods would be an advantage
- An enthusiasm for museums, history, art or natural history or any other of the other subjects covered by the museums and visitor services would be an advantage
- To demonstrate a passion for the destination of Portsmouth and the local tourism product.
- Experience of working at functions such as weddings and major tourism events.
- To be flexible and willing to work weekends, evenings and bank holidays as required. The role will involve working at all sites.
- Understanding of the importance of safeguarding.
If you do not hear from us your application has not been shortlisted.
When completing the application form, please thoroughly tailor your application to the 'Who is the Person' points with the use of examples from your experience and attach this as a cover letter in the Supporting Documents section. This is really important or you are likely not to be shortlisted. Please click here for the full job profile.
Please clearly indicate which post(s) you are interested in on your application.
Closing date: 20th March 2023
Interviews: 28th March 2023 at Portsmouth Museum
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.
We really appreciate our employees and fully realise they are essential to our success and look to offer an inclusive, supportive working environment where employees can reach their potentials with a healthy work life balance, offering the following rewards:
- A generous pension scheme
- Up to 31 days annual leave per year + bank holidays
- A range of retail discounts via our reward portal offering discounts at retailers including IKEA, Currys, Tesco
- Free Access to Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and wellbeing support
- Access to a wide range of training and development opportunities including apprenticeships
- Potential to purchase additional annual leave
- Business travel support and initiatives, including bike loans