Museum Education Volunteer

About the West Midlands Police Museum at the Lock-Up: 

The West Midlands Police Museum is dedicated to telling the history of policing in the West Midlands from the early days of law and order right through to today. As well as talking about the past, we’ll also be engaging visitors with current policing messages. We need your help to tell these important stories to our visitors.

About the role: 

The role of Educational Activities Assistant, is a voluntary post, which supports the role of the Museum Engagement Officer during visits by schools and other, similar groups.

Main activities of the role: 

• Supporting the Museum Engagement Officer and other staff with museum tours, educational inputs and hands-on activities, as required; 
• A combination of collaborative and independent work, including some opportunities for costumed role play; 
• Outreach work within local schools and other organisations (if you have indicated that you are able to do so). 

Any necessary training will be provided.

Opportunities: 

• To learn about the history of policing in the West Midlands; 
• To meet new people; 
• To improve customer service skills, particularly in relation to working with children and young people of all ages and backgrounds; 
• To learn about museums and heritage. 
• To improve presentation and public speaking skills. 
• Safeguarding training

Skills and experience needed: 

• Passion for policing heritage and museums; 
• Confidence to engage with the public, in particular children and young people; 
• Great communication skills; 
• Enthusiasm for learning; 
• Willingness to travel to the Lock-Up and other venues if required; 
• A professional approach to working with vulnerable persons.

Volunteering Times:

• The museum will be open to schools Monday to Friday 10am - 4pm. This is mostly term time but we do have school bookings in the school holidays. 
• School visits are normally 10am – 2.30pm

We do not require our volunteers to complete a minimum number of hours each month, but the expectation is that an individual volunteers once a month at the museum

Location

The West Midlands Police Museum at the Lock-Up, Steelhouse Lane B4 6NW

Vetting

All volunteers will need to be vetted by West Midlands Police to undertake this role. In addition to this, a DBS may be required - if successful post interview the team will inform you if the DBS is required. 

Contact

For further information please contact either Tracey Arch (Engagement Officer) on tracey.arch@westmidlands.police.uk ot Helen Taylor (Museum Manager) on helen.taylor2@westmidlands.police.uk 

Prospective officers and staff must be held to a higher standard of behaviour and accountability than members of the public, and that therefore their right to privacy can be fettered in certain circumstances. This is to ensure that members of the police are fully aware and accountable for the unique powers entrusted to them and the standards of professional behaviour they swear to uphold. 

West Midlands Police is a Disability Confident Leader - the highest level an organisation can achieve under the scheme run by the Department of Work and Pensions.  As part of our commitment we operate a ‘Disability Confident Interview Scheme’ - all candidates who declare a disability and meet the essential criteria for the role will be offered an interview.  

It is important to note that there may be occasions where it is not practicable or appropriate to interview all disabled people who meet the essential criteria for the job. For example: in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. In these circumstances, the employer could select the candidates who best meet the essential criteria for the job, as they would do for non-disabled applicants.

"Diversity and Inclusion Vision:  Maximise the potential of people from all backgrounds through a culture of fairness and inclusion to deliver the best service for our communities"