JOB DESCRIPTION - Worcestershire County Council

JOB DESCRIPTIONVisitor Services Assistant (Museum)Directorate and Section/Unit:Adult and Community Services; Cultural Services;County Museum ServiceScale: 2Reporting to:Visitor Services OfficerResponsible for:There are no staff directly supervisedMain purpose of job:• This crucial role requires an enthusiastic and engaging individual to welcome ourvisitors, interpret the museum and its collection in an enjoyable and informative wayand to deliver excellent standards of customer care at all times.Responsibilities, duties and tasks:• To provide a high standard of welcome to all visitors and interact with them in order to bringthe museum building and its collection to life• To project a positive, friendly image of the County Museum and uphold the image ofWorcestershire County Council• To engage with visitors enabling them to explore and enjoy gallery themes and historicideas, interpreting themes clearly and accurately and in an appropriate manner.• To develop a thorough knowledge of the Museum, its history, collections, services andexhibitions in order to provide accurate, interesting and useful information to our visitors• To assist with interpretative activities and demonstrations as directed by the Museum’seducation section and to offer guidance to visitors on the use of interactive exhibits• To assist with the delivery of the education programme including welcoming school parties,managing their movement around the site and overseeing educational activities whennecessary• To provide assistance with special events and temporary exhibitions, including assistingwith planning and preparation prior to events and delivery on the event days• To assist in the preparation and movement of museum exhibitions and display furniture andto prepare and clear rooms as instructed for special events and private functions• To be responsible for the high quality appearance of the museum on a daily basis, includingthe regular checking of visitor areas during open hours and undertaking any responsivecleaning or litter clearing which may be necessary• To patrol exhibition areas and grounds to ensure the security of the site and the collectionsand to be conscious of any particular health and safety or security risks, reporting anythinggiving cause for concern to the VSO or a senior member of staff in the VSO’s absence• To carry our basic maintenance duties around the site i.e. changing light bulbs/fuses,painting, simple repairs

• To provide short introductory talks about the museum and the Castle to visiting groups andcoach parties• To be responsible for the safe evacuation of members of the public from the museum in anemergency to agreed procedures, and to regularly check fire monitoring and safetyequipment• To be responsible for securing the premises and setting alarm systems• To ensure that all cleaning equipment/products are stored safely and maintained in goodworking order and to report any defects or shortages to the VSO• To undertake weekend, bank holiday and evening duties as required• To drive the museum van as and when requiredGeneral Duties:• To maintain personal and professional development to meet the changing demands of the job,participate in appropriate training activities• To undertake such other duties, training and/or hours of work as may be reasonably requiredand which are consistent with the general level of responsibility of this job.• To undertake health and safety duties commensurate with the post and/or as detailed in theDirectorate’s Health and Safety Policy.Contacts:In all contacts the postholder will be required to present a good image of the Directorate and theCounty Council as well as maintaining constructive relationships.Internal: Other staff, both paid and voluntary, within the County Museum, colleagues withinCorporate Services Directorate, other County Council DirectoratesExternal: Members of the public, staff at other museums, contractorsNotes:The Council reserves the right to alter the content of this job description, after consultation to reflectchanges to the job or services provided, without altering the general character or level ofresponsibility.The duties described in this job description must be carried out in a manner which promotes equalityof opportunity, dignity and due respect for all employees and service users and is consistent with theCouncil’s Equal Opportunities Policy.This post is subject to a criminal record check under the arrangements established by the CriminalRecords Bureau.Prepared by: Robin Hill, County Museums Officer, 2006Updated 26 th June

JOB DESCRIPTIONVisitor Services Assistant (Reception)Directorate and Section/Unit: Adult and Community Services; Cultural Services; CountyMuseum ServiceScale:Reporting to: Visitor Services OfficerFunctional responsibility to Administrative AssistantResponsible for: There are no staff directly supervisedMain purpose of job:• To act as the Museum’s first point of contact for visitors to Hartlebury, and to deliverexcellent standards of customer care at all times• The day-to-day operation of the Museum’s retail outlet• To provide clerical and office support duties as requiredResponsibilities, duties and tasks:• To staff the reception facility at Hartlebury for visitors to the site, telephone callers and ITenquiries• To collect admission fees from visitors and issue tickets as appropriate• To record all school and adult party arrivals and to ensure that all group leaders sign in and arefully briefed• To ensure that a relief member of staff is available to cover the reception point prior to leaving itfor any reason• To be responsible for the safe evacuation of members of public from the museum in anemergency• To ensure that the shop and reception area and AV room are kept clean and tidy at all times,and that floral arrangements in the reception area are maintained to a high standard accordingto published guidelines• To staff the Museum’s retail outlet• To display stock lines in an attractive format to established guidelines• To maintain adequate stocks of items for resale and advise of shortages• To assist in stocktaking whenever required• To reconcile admission and sales takings with till records on a daily basis, and to ensure that allmonies are placed in the safe at the close of each day• To contribute to the professional presentation of the Museum Service, working towards agreedstandards and ensuring the delivery of excellent customer care at all times• To undertake text processing as required, including mail merge• To establish and maintain spreadsheets and data bases as required

• To use internal SAP system to order items, create goods receipts and raise debtor accounts, asinstructed• To assist in the banking of income• To assist in other financial duties, such as the administration of the imprest account and thecollection of private telephone bills and photocopying charges• To assist in the maintenance of staffing records on Workforce• To assist with taking bookings for the hire of the State Rooms and the Castle Kitchen• To assist with the distribution of the incoming post and emails to the ServiceGeneral Duties:• To maintain personal and professional development to meet the changing demands of the job,participate in appropriate training activities and encourage and support staff in their developmentand training.• To undertake such other duties, training and/or hours of work as may be reasonably required andwhich are consistent with the general level of responsibility of this job. This will involve regularworking at weekends, on bank holidays and during evenings.• To undertake health and safety duties commensurate with the post and/or as detailed in theDirectorate’s Health and Safety Policy.Contacts:In all contacts the postholder will be required to present a good image of the Directorate and theCounty Council as well as maintaining constructive relationships.Internal: Other services within Department, colleagues within Corporate Services Directorate,other County Council DirectoratesExternal: Members of the public, staff at other museums, contractorsNotes:The Council reserves the right to alter the content of this job description, after consultation to reflectchanges to the job or services provided, without altering the general character or level ofresponsibility.The duties described in this job description must be carried out in a manner which promotes equalityof opportunity, dignity and due respect for all employees and service users and is consistent with theCouncil’s Equal Opportunities Policy.This post is subject to a criminal record check under the arrangements established by the CriminalRecords Bureau.Prepared by: Robin Hill, County Museums OfficerDate: December 14 th 2006