What do volunteers do within the Museums you may wonder…

I can assure you that it is more than you may realise! I’m the Culture Track Project Coordinator and I support a number of volunteers who are unemployed to develop new skills and experience through volunteering in museums and galleries to help prepare for work.

I’m really lucky that I get to work with and support such a wide range of people. Every day is different, helping volunteers to put to use their new skills and to try new things, like how to create a book from scratch or how to make and edit a short film.

Here’s a group of Discovery Museum volunteers. Alex, Brian, Stephen, Malcolm and Paul

In the last year there have been over 400 people volunteering across Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums and out of this group 69 people have been involved in the Culture Track project. So far 15 Culture Track volunteers have secured employment, some of whom now work with us in the museums, which is fantastic!!

The volunteers have been involved in so many different roles, from dressing up as Roman Soldiers, to object handling, to creating their own radio show, winning awards and much more in between.

Object handling at the Discovery Museum. Stephen, one of our volunteers, gets to grips with a fox stole with Curatorial Assistant Alex Boyd and Project Coordinator Lauren Prince

My blog will feature more about volunteering within the museums and give you an insight into why people volunteer and why we involve volunteers in our work within the museums.

The volunteers visiting The Regional Resource Centre at Beamish last year. Paul, Richard, Colin, Malcolm, Stephen, Sam and Derek