Visitor Assistant - Barber Institute of Fine Arts - 98317 - Band 200 (Part-time) (2 Posts)

VISITOR ASSISTANT - 98317 - (PART-TIME, 2 X POSTS)

Position Details

Barber Institute of Fine Arts

Full time starting salary is normally £17,886, with potential progression once in post to £19,804 (pro rata for part-time)

Band 200

Part-time; 22.5 hours over three days per week, Tuesdays to Sundays; 9.30 am to 5.00 pm

Fixed-term until 27 February 2022

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK

Closing Date: 27 October 2021

Our offer to you

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential.  With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate.  We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are,  and how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working.  In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site.  On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham

Summary of Role

To provide an excellent experience for all visitors and building users, particularly for visitors to the temporary exhibition and main galleries, whilst ensuring the highest standards of security of the building and its contents.

Playing a public facing role in a small, friendly team, you will enhance the visitor experience and contribute to creating a safe, welcoming and friendly environment.

Enthusiastically and appropriately communicating your knowledge of the Barber's collection and current and forthcoming exhibitions with visitors is a key part of the role. You will be required to answer questions, share information and support visitors to engage with the works on display, ensuring a memorable and enjoyable experience for all visitors.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Visitor Service

• Welcome, orientate, inform and support visitors as they arrive in the first floor galleries and exhibition space.
• Maintain an up to date knowledge of current and forthcoming exhibitions, visitor facilities and Barber public programme of events and activities.
• Enhance the visitor experience by demonstrating and appropriately communicating knowledge of the current and planned temporary exhibitions
• Enhance the visitor experience by demonstrating and appropriately communicating a basic working knowledge of the collection, the Barber's history and purpose and our current public programme.
• Actively and appropriately promoting products available for purchase at the Barber and via the online shop and signposting to the Barber's public programme.
• Sharing general knowledge of the University of Birmingham campus facilities and local information in a friendly and helpful manner
• Be alert to, and supportive of, the needs of all visitors, including those with additional needs.
• Welcome all visitors to a consistently high standard ensuring those with protected characteristics and accessibility needs are treated equally and fairly

Security

• Understand the security issues the building and the collections and adhere to security processes and procedures
• Deliver a vigilant presence whilst on duty in the galleries, providing a high level of security in order to project the collection and exhibitions from damage (deliberate or accidental) or theft.
• Understand, clearly communicate and politely enforce the public gallery rules, dealing with any incidents tactfully and sensitively
• Be alert Reporting any unusual/concerning activity and report to the Visitor Services Supervisor and/or the Visitor Services Manager in a timely and accurate fashion.
• Working with the Visitor Services Supervisor and the Loans and Exhibition Manager ensure the daily security routines for the exhibition conducted to the expected standard.

Safety

• Gain knowledge through training of emergency procedures and fire safety, updating knowledge as necessary.
• Be aware of any permanent or temporary hazards to visitors or colleagues' safety and take appropriate action.
• In the event of emergencies according to training provided, take appropriate action and assist with maintaining personal and asset safety and security.
• Report maintenance defects relating to the building, main galleries and the temporary exhibition to the Visitor Services Supervisor and/or Visitor Services Manager in a timely and accurate fashion.
• Understand and apply the General Evacuation Procedure for the Barber Institute.

General Operations

• Assist with the general operations of the main galleries when required, including facilitating assisted access and access to the Barber yard by appropriate users.
• Assist with set-up for events and private views.
• Assist with cleaning the exhibition and gallery areas as required.
• Monitor and record environmental conditions within the Lady Barber Gallery

Other

• Attend daily team briefings and any other meetings relevant to the post.
• Attend pre-opening exhibition information/training session(s).
• Proactively share exhibition learning and visitor feedback with colleagues from across the Barber.
• Standardised use of a radio for communications as per training
• This role requires satisfactory clearance from the Disclosure and Barring Service, formerly known as the Criminal Records Bureau Disclosure.

Person Specification

Essential

• Experience of working with the public in a visitor-facing role.
• Excellent customer service skills
• The ability to communicate with a diverse range of people, verbally and in writing, in a friendly, helpful, confident and accessible manner.
• The ability to handle day-to-day routine enquiries and ability to decide when to pass more complex queries to the appropriate person
• Good attention to detail.
• Self-motivated and flexible approach to work, willing to take on a variety of tasks, demonstrate initiative and prioritise effectively between tasks.
• The ability to work independently as well as part of a team.
• An understanding of the security issues involved in the daily running of a world- class art gallery.
• Competence with office computer systems such as MS Word, Excel and Outlook
• Demonstrable enthusiasm for arts, culture and heritage, willingness to learn and update knowledge of collection and exhibitions.
• Ability to learn about temporary exhibitions and share your knowledge with all visitors to the exhibition
• In addition to the regular shift pattern of work throughout the fixed term contract, available and willing to work Bank Holidays and weekends where required during the contract.

Desirable

• Experience of the security functions involved in the running of a public gallery with contents of substantial importance
• First Aid Training
• Frontline S.I.A Licence

Informal enquiries can be made to David Lowe; d.s.lowe@bham.ac.uk

Valuing excellence, sustaining investment

We value diversity and inclusion at the University of Birmingham and welcome applications from all sections of the community and are open to discussions around all forms of flexible working.