Careers
From time to time we have vacancies for a number of roles at the Food Museum, including visitor services, estate management, collections management and learning.
Please click the job below for details
Deputy Director
Job Title: Deputy Director
Term: Full-time, permanent
Salary Range: £38,000-40,000
The Deputy Director will direct the museum’s trading activities, taking on the overarching direction of the catering, events and retail business and sharing responsibility for fundraising and financial management of the organisation with the Museum Director who will be focusing on the delivery of The Kitchen Project. The Deputy Director will represent the museum, build partnerships and share and promote the museum’s work.
We are looking for someone who is committed to the museum’s mission, with good commercial experience, financial skills and entrepreneurial drive. The job involves managing and motivating teams, so good people skills and the ability to deliver supportive challenge are important, as is – given the size of our organisation – a willingness to step in and provide practical help where needed.
The Kitchen Project
The role is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund as part of The Kitchen Project, a multi-year programme of activities and capital works. The museum has been awarded a stage 1 pass. Over the next 18 months, we will appoint an architectural team and develop plans and partnerships in order to submit a stage 2 application for further support in early 2025.
The project will ultimately deliver 5 years of exciting and engaging collaborative programmes of activities and exhibitions, including creating new opportunities for volunteering. It will transform the presentation of a group of buildings at the centre of the museum’s large 84-acre site. This will include re-erecting the medieval timber-framed ‘Edgar’s Farmhouse’, representation of a historic Victorian factory space, two Second World War huts and works to the stunning Grade II* Medieval Barn. The museum aims to create an interactive display of historical kitchens with food from different eras. Over the next year, the museum will be developing a ‘School Dinners’ exhibition and activity programme in collaboration with others. There will be opportunities for schools and a small number of 16-18 year-olds to get involved, via a Young Curators scheme which will be launched in spring.
Main duties
- Own the income generation strategy and identify effective ways of generating income from the museum’s assets.
- Manage the Events Manager, Catering Manager and Retail team and provide leadership to the Trading Company.
- Oversee HR and ensure that the museum is compliant with current legislation and best practice.
- Work closely with the Director to set and meet the museum’s financial targets and oversee the day-to-day finances.
- Fundraise towards the museum’s plans.
- Lead on development and delivery of projects to deliver improvements to the museum’s operations. Project manage programme, budget and quality.
- Collect and use data and evaluate the work we create to inform decision-making.
- Build partnerships and relationships outside the museum. Act as an ambassador for the museum. Look for opportunities to work with others to deliver events and activities and help the museum to be a more open and welcoming place.
- Recruit and manage volunteers, working creatively to provide opportunities to engage others with the work of the museum.
- Support the delivery of museum events, learning, marketing and fundraising.
To apply
Please complete an application form and a recruitment monitoring form and email them to jobs@foodmuseum.org.uk – both can be downloaded below.
The closing date for receipt of applications is Thursday 7 December 2023 at midnight.
Interviews will take place on Wednesday 13 December.
Partnerships & Volunteer Coordinator
Job Title: Partnerships & Volunteer Coordinator
Term: Full-time, initial fixed-term of 2 years, followed by fixed-term of 5 years subject to successful Heritage Fund stage 2 grant application
Salary Range: £26,000 to £30,000
The Partnerships & Volunteer Coordinator will produce and implement a strategy to help us to put diversity and inclusion at the heart of the museum’s collecting, interpretation and public programme, and to deliver and support in the delivery of projects and initiatives which help grow audiences and volunteering. They will represent the museum, build partnerships and share and promote the museum’s work.
We are looking for someone who is committed to the museum’s mission and has a wide-ranging interest in people and enthusiasm for food. We’re looking for someone who will set up and drive partnerships with a range of others (organisations, individuals, groups) so you need to have strong collaborative and organisation skills to keep projects on track. The job also involves creating and leading a team of volunteers so you need to be comfortable with being hands-on and motivating others.
The Kitchen Project
The role is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund as part of The Kitchen Project. The museum has been awarded a stage 1 pass. Over the next 18 months, we will appoint an architectural team and develop plans and partnerships in order to submit a stage 2 application for further support in early 2025.
The project will ultimately deliver 5 years of exciting and engaging collaborative programmes of activities and exhibitions, including creating new opportunities for volunteering. It will transform the presentation of a group of buildings at the centre of the museum’s large 84-acre site. This will include re-erecting the medieval timber-framed ‘Edgar’s Farmhouse’, representation of a historic Victorian factory space, two Second World War huts and works to the stunning Grade II* Medieval Barn. The museum aims to create an interactive display of historical kitchens with food from different eras. Over the next year, the museum will be developing a ‘School Dinners’ exhibition and activity programme in collaboration with others. There will be opportunities for schools and a small number of 16-18 year-olds to get involved, via a Young Curators scheme which will be launched in spring.
Main duties:
- Own The Kitchen Project activity plan and its implementation. Lead on development and delivery of programmes to grow and diversify audiences, working to deliver the targets identified in The Kitchen Project application.
- Build internal and external teams to deliver activities. Project manage programmes, budget and quality. Work closely across the Learning and Collections teams to programme activities. Evaluate the work we create and use data to inform decision-making.
- Build partnerships and relationships outside the museum. Act as an ambassador for the museum, producing online and offline content. Build relationships and partnerships with identified target audiences and look for opportunities to work with them to deliver events, activities and exhibitions and help the museum to be a more open and welcoming place.
- Recruit and manage volunteers, working creatively to provide opportunities to engage others with the work of the museum.
- Support the delivery of museum events, learning, marketing and fundraising.
To apply
Please complete an application form and a recruitment monitoring form and email them to jobs@foodmuseum.org.uk – both can be downloaded below.
The closing date for receipt of applications is Thursday 7 December 2023 at midnight.
Interviews will take place on Thursday 14 December.
Sales Supervisor
Job Title: Sales Supervisor
Term: Permanent, part-time, 1 day a week
Salary: £25,000-£27,000 pro rata
The Sales Supervisor selects and orders shop stock, does visual merchandising and keeps our customer, membership and retail system data up to date. They will work with the Retail Assistants to keep the shop looking and performing its best.
You will love retail and have excellent visual merchandising/display skills. You will be commercially minded and see the opportunity for the shop to grow and support the wider work of the museum with an exciting range of products, books and food-related gifts. We are looking for someone friendly, outgoing and confident with a commitment to the museum’s mission.
Main duties
- Order stock: Deliver against the retail business plan and income targets, staying within agreed budgets. Research and order stock and keep the EPOS database up-to-date. Make data-based and customer-driven decisions about what the museum stocks and look for ways to improve sales performance. Seek advice from the museum team to develop product ranges which tie in with the public programme.
- Present and manage stock: Ensure that robust stock management procedures are in place and followed. Keep the shop well-stocked and attractive.
- Membership sales: Issue memberships renewals and keep our Customer Relations Management (CRM) system up to date, ensuring that accurate details are collected for reclaiming Gift Aid. Steward our members and look for opportunities to add value to membership.
- Take deliveries and answer phone enquiries; occasional cover in the shop.
- Respond responsibly in the event of an emergency or incident, taking charge as the most senior member of staff where appropriate.
- Support museum events.
To apply
Please complete an application form and a recruitment monitoring form and email them to jobs@foodmuseum.org.uk – both can be downloaded below.
The closing date for receipt of applications is Thursday 7 December 2023 at 5pm.
Interviews will take place on Friday 15 December
Freelance Evaluation Consultant
The Food Museum is seeking to appoint a freelance evaluation consultant or consultancy to work closely with the Project Team to develop and evaluation plan to support the delivery, monitoring and evaluation of The Kitchen Project.
Tender opportunity published: 14 November 2023
Deadline for submission: midday on Friday 15 December 2023.
Volunteering
We have over 100 active volunteers and are always on the look-out for passionate and loyal people to join us. Find out more.
Work experience
If you are interested in work experience or undertaking a Duke of Edinburgh placement at the museum, please get in touch outlining what you are looking for by email.