At the Museum at Tring, Hertfordshire, you can volunteer to interact with visitors in the Museum's specimen-rich galleries or to help out in the gardens.
Our opportunities have flexible commitment requirements and aim to provide a rewarding and enriching experience for all.
We also run a work experience programme of one week placements for 14-18 year old students.
Volunteer roles
Learning Volunteer
Develop your confidence, skills and knowledge to interact with our visitors, through a range of hands-on learning activities.
Learning Volunteers bring Museum specimens into our galleries and exhibitions to support visitors of all ages to investigate the natural world and create unforgettable experiences.
You will use real specimens in our handling collection, from animal skulls to insects, to share your knowledge with school groups and the public.
The programme includes training on how to engage with visitors and handle specimens. You will also help to shape the future of the programme, collaborating in developing new activities.
Main Tasks
- Engaging with families, adults and school children
- Delivering hands on activities
- Answering visitors questions
- Developing ideas for future activities
Garden Volunteer
In this role, you will learn how to encourage biodiversity in a satisfying, fun, educational and social environment, and contribute to developing a dynamic, beautiful and usable space for Museum visitors and local community.
There is a variety of green areas at the Natural History Museum at Tring - a garden around the building, a pond and garden, a small patch of woodland and a wildflower meadow.
Most volunteers will come once or twice per month on an ad hoc basis.
Main Tasks
This role involves a range of practical activities throughout the year, for example:
- seed sowing, planting and weeding
- tree and pond care
- building minibeast hotels, seating and interpretation
- species recording
The Museum at Tring
The Museum at Tring, Hertfordshire is packed with over 4,900 fascinating specimens.
The private collection of Lionel Walter Rothschild became the basis of the collections housed at Tring, located on the grounds of his family home.
Work Experience
Work experience is the chance for school students (Year 10 through to 18 year-olds) to spend one week away from the classroom learning about a real job or area of work and gaining hands-on experience.
We offer four work experience placements a year, each lasting five days (Monday to Friday 09.30-16.30).
Person Specification:
We are looking for students with:
- A passion for natural history and museums
- An interest in birds
- Experience of using computers including Excel
- Excellent manual dexterity
- A local connection to Tring (e.g. you live or go to school in the area or have relatives living nearby).
What can you gain from the role?
You will have the opportunity to work behind the scenes in the bird research collections and also in the public museum. You will be under the supervision and guidance of museum curators, learning and events officers, gallery attendants and retail staff.
Main Tasks and Responsibilities
The selected students will work alongside Museum staff to help with tasks such as:
- Preparing, labelling and sorting bird specimens in the collections
- Computer based research and data entry
- Assisting in the preparation of learning activities
- Stocking shelves in the shop
- Welcoming and assisting visitors