The Gardens Trust is looking for a self-motivated person to work as a Volunteer Support Officer. They will work with the Gardens Trust’s existing Volunteer Support Team to deliver training for a new research and recording project in Suffolk. We are seeking a good communicator with experience of working or volunteering in the heritage or historic environment sector, and of working with volunteers.
The Gardens Trust is the only UK national charity dedicated to protecting and conserving our heritage of designed landscapes. We campaign for them, undertake research and conservation work, and encourage public appreciation and involvement. We are passionate about sharing our understanding and love of landscapes with the wider community, and are keen to get better at doing this.
Historic England funds Suffolk’s Garden Story
We are delighted that we have just been awarded a grant from Historic England for a 1.5-year project called ‘Suffolk’s Garden Story’. The project will recruit and train new volunteers to research and record Suffolk’s non-designated designed landscapes. The volunteers will then add information about them to appropriate heritage databases. The project also aims to strengthen the volunteer capacity of Suffolk Gardens Trust. It is part of the Gardens Trust’s Unforgettable Gardens celebration. The project will be a template for other volunteer groups, showing them how they can deliver similar projects and why they make a difference.
Volunteer Support Officer role
The work will be based in Suffolk and we are looking for an officer to deliver the project on the ground, with support and guidance from our experienced national team. The salary will be £27,500 pro rata for 14 hours per week (0.4 full-time equivalent). The contract is from around 6th June 2022 until 30th November 2023 (funded by Historic England).
The work will include:
- Recruiting 75-100 local volunteers.
- Delivering research and recording training to volunteers who will probably be new to garden history, based on an agreed format written by the GT.
- Supporting 15-30 volunteers as they carry out research and recording of non-designated historic designed landscapes.
- Training and supporting the volunteers to input their research into national and local databases of heritage. These include the National Heritage List for England, Historic Environment Records and Local Heritage Lists.
Download the GT Suffolk Volunteer Support Officer.
To apply please send a covering letter and your CV to Tamsin McMillan. The covering letter should be no more than two sides of A4, and should show how your experience meets the requirements of the role. Please also say where you saw this post advertised.
The closing date for applications is midnight on 6th April 2022. Interviews will be held by Zoom on 28th April 2022, with a follow-up Zoom discussion on 29th April or 3rd May.
Image: Brandon Country Park © Bob Jones, Wikimedia Commons
