Full time Collection Care Trainee at House of Lords
Job Description
Background
We’re looking for an enthusiastic, self-motivated and organised emerging professional, who enjoys working in a stimulating and collaborative environment, to deliver conservation and preservation service to the Archives and its collections.
The Parliamentary Archives (PA) is a shared service of both Houses of Parliament, based in the House of Lords but jointly funded by the House of Lords and House of Commons. It provides innovative and expert information management, preservation, access, and outreach services enabling anyone in the world to use Parliament’s records, both now and in the future.
The PA holds over 13km of physical records dating back to 1497, including many of the most important constitutional records in the UK, such as the Bill of Rights, the 1832 Great Reform Act and the Death Warrant of Charles I. The collection is comprised predominately of parchment and paper, as well as photographic material.
There are four teams in the Archives: Information Strategy & Governance, Information & Records Management Service (IRMS); Public Services & Outreach (PS&O); and Preservation & Access (P&A). The P&A team brings together responsibility for preservation and conservation of records in all formats (Digital and Physical), their cataloguing, digitisation, and online access. The Collection Care (CC) department is based in the Preservation & Access Team.
The CC team consists of 6 staff who undertake a range of conservation and preservation activities. Our mission is to care for and enhance the historic heritage that preserves the memory of the nation and its diverse communities.
We are committed to:
- Provide exemplary collection care management for Parliament’s physical archives following best practice in conservation and preservation.
- Safeguard, preserve and conserve archival collections to ensure long- term sustainability and access by making informed decision based on data and research.
- Deliver seamless and innovative services enabling everyone to discover and explore Parliament’s physical archives.
This is a particularly exciting time to join the Collection Care Team in the Parliamentary Archives as we embark upon a monumental task to balance conservation and preservation delivery services with the relocation of the Parliamentary Archives from the Palace of Westminster to other facilities by 2025.
The post aims to provide valuable experience in a plethora of activities including documentation, treatment, environmental monitoring, pest management, re-housing, transportation, exhibitions and loans, public engagement, and salvage. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to explore different elements of our profession and become equipped with the necessary knowledge and experience to choose the path in conservation that suit their talents and skills.
Main objective
The post will report to the Collection Care Manager and will be supervised and mentored by the Conservation Studio Manager. The Collection Care Trainee will support day to day conservation requests, participate in preservation activities and contribute to knowledge exchange. They will shadow team members and participate in their day-to-day activities, asking questions and providing key support. The post holder should adhere to professional Code of Ethics (ICON, ICRI, ECCO, AIC etc) and Health and Safety requirements.
One of the following is required for the post:
- A degree (or working towards) in conservation, preservation or heritage sustainability.
- Professional experience in delivering collection care and conservation activities.
The knowledge, skills and experience required for the post are outlined below. Each element will be assessed in the examples you provide in your application form. Should you be shortlisted these areas will be assessed in more depth at interview and, if appropriate, in a test.
Competencies
Essential:
- Experience of working with Library and Archive Materials including report and treatment proposal writing skills.
- A practical and pragmatic approach to problem solving and ability to time manage and prioritise tasks.
- Ability to use initiative to work alone or part of a team on special projects or routine tasks.
- Willingness to learn and update knowledge and skills through research and training.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills.
- Knowledge of COSHH and Health & Safety regulations as they relate to Collection Care and collection handling.
Next Steps
If you would like to apply for this role, please submit an application form, demonstrating how your skills and experience meet the essential competencies on the job description.
More information on the role, the full list of duties/responsibilities and criteria can be found on the job description.
Why Join?
In addition to your salary, we offer an attractive range of benefits including:
- 30 days’ annual leave (increasing to 35 days after first full leave year).
- Civil Service Pension scheme.
- Access to a range of flexible working options, where possible.
- A suite of learning and development opportunities.
- Interest free season ticket loan and bicycle loan.
Location :London
Closing Date :25th June 2023
HOW TO APPLY
Click Here to Submit your CV and Application on Company Website