Exhibitions and Engagement Officer

About the Exhibitions and Engagement Officer role

This is an exciting opportunity to work in a collaborative heritage service, working across all teams within Heritage and Culture Warwickshire, using the resources of the Warwickshire Museum Service and Warwickshire County Record Office collections.

The Exhibitions and Engagement Officer role is responsible for leading the development and delivery of the exhibition programme at the Market Hall Museum, working in partnership with the Museum Collections Team and project groups that are developing exhibitions at the museum. There is a regular programme to change displays at the Market Hall Museum with the addition of a whole redisplay for the ground floor every two years for a special exhibition.

In addition, the post holder leads on the development and delivery of a touring exhibition programme that is hosted by Warwickshire Libraries. There are usually two exhibitions a year that tour selected Warwickshire Library venues, using temporary exhibition cases.

To successfully deliver exhibitions in these spaces the post holder will need to be able to work collaboratively with our Collections and Community Engagement teams to create compelling content and engaging narratives for our audiences. They will be able to utilise the breadth of our museum collections and demonstrate expertise in exhibition storytelling and participatory practice.

They will also need to demonstrate good practice in museum display methods and collections care. Heritage and Culture Warwickshire use InDesign software to create exhibition panels for the Market Hall Museum. Previous experience of using InDesign or other design software would be beneficial, or a willingness to learn how to use InDesign.

The post holder will be willing to work across both natural and human history collections, with an understanding of how to create engaging content in a community setting as well as a traditional museum environment. Experience of working with archive materials in an exhibition and display context would be beneficial. The Exhibitions and Engagement Officer will be passionate about, and advocate for, the needs of audiences from a wide range of backgrounds and be comfortable in working with communities to co-create content.

The post holder will need good project management skills and be able to think strategically when planning exhibition themes and content to consider opportunities for different HCW teams. HCW teams work collaboratively; the post holder will be joining a supportive team environment. We are looking for a candidate with the ability to work collaboratively and lead conversations.

The post is being offered on a part-time basis, 2.5 days per week (18.5 hours), with working pattern days and hours to be negotiated/offered on a flexible basis. The post is offered as a permanent contract.

About Heritage and Culture Warwickshire

Heritage and Culture Warwickshire (HCW) provide a wide range of services that help local communities and visitors to connect and engage with their local heritage. We safeguard Warwickshire's archives, history and natural sciences, protect its historic and natural environment and provide high-quality arts and cultural opportunities and lifelong learning for everyone in the County and beyond.

Heritage and Culture Warwickshire has several sites based in and around Warwick, including Market Hall Museum, St Johns House, Warwickshire County Record Office, and a Collections Centre for the museum collections. The Heritage and Culture team includes Local Studies Librarians who are based in the county's libraries and work closely with colleagues from Warwickshire Library Service. We are a countywide service and work strategically with partners from within and outside Warwickshire County Council to offer outreach services to local communities and support, and develop, the heritage and cultural infrastructure of the county.

About the Learning and Community Engagement Team

The role of Exhibitions and Engagement Officer sits within the Learning and Community Engagement team (Lace). The team consists of the Senior Lace Officer, a Lace Officer, the Volunteer Coordinator, the Exhibitions and Engagement Officer, and the Lace Trainee, who are the core team, and several teams of staff who deliver our activity programmes. We deliver workshops for schools at HCW sites and in schools, an events and activities programme for families and adult audiences at the Market Hall Museum and the County Record Office, we run regular groups that meet at the Market Hall Museum such as Arty Tots, support the Development Team with income generation, and support the teams of volunteers that work with different services in HCW.

The Lace team works closely with other teams in HCW to support exhibition and project development and delivery. Members of the Lace team will write and contribute to the writing of funding grants across HCW and the evaluation reports for projects. They sit on project groups to ensure the delivery of projects, working with colleagues across HCW and external partners.

The Lace team has a responsibility to income generate part of its annual operating budget and runs a range of events that engage audiences with local heritage as well as contributing to this responsibility. The Lace team also works with the Development Team to develop new income generation activities.

About the Museum Collections Team

Although based in the Lace team, the Exhibitions and Engagement Officer will need to work closely with the Museum Collections Team to be successful in the role. We are looking for someone who can successfully work across teams and can build excellent working relationships with colleagues.

The Museum Collections Team consists of a Curator of Human History, a Curator of Natural Sciences, and a Collections Assistant who works across all the museum collections. The museum collections are broadly split into four traditional collections of geology, natural history, archaeology, and social history, having their origins in an antiquarian society who founded the Market Hall Museum.

The team is responsible for the care of the collections at Market Hall Museum, St John's House, and the Collections Centre, as well as a loaned collection on display at the Roman Heritage Museum at Alcester. The Exhibitions and Engagement Officer will work collaboratively with the Museum Collections Team to plan and deliver redisplay of cases in the galleries of Market Hall Museum.

The team sits on project groups to ensure the delivery of projects, working with colleagues across HCW and external partners. They are committed to creating opportunities for Warwickshire communities to access the collections and their stories.

The Museum Collections Team is part of the wider HCW's collection team which includes staff from the Warwickshire County Record Office, and the archive collections that are held there. The Exhibitions and Engagement Officer will be expected to work with the Record Office teams to include archive material in Market Hall displays, where appropriate.

For further information please see the Job Description and Person Specification.

Additional Information

The Fluency Duty is outlined in the Code of Practice on the English language requirements for public sector workers. The Fluency Duty for this role is Required. You must be able to speak and provide advice in accurate spoken English to the public.

For further information or an informal discussion about the post please contact Rebecca Coles, Senior Learning & Community Engagement Officer, .

Closing date: 24 th March 2025
Interview date: 7 th April 2025

Should you require application forms in an alternative format / language or any adjustments to be made throughout the application process or upon appointment, please contact and we will make every effort to meet your specific requirements.

Warwickshire County Council is committed to equality of opportunity for all employees and is keen to address areas of under representation in its workforce.