Student Casual - Unlocking the Vaults Project Assistant- Public and Cultural Engagement – Grade 4 – 906196 bei The University of Birmingham

Position Details

School or Department: Public and Cultural Engagement

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Grade/Band: Grade 4

Hourly rate: £14.93 per hour plus holiday entitlement

Casual contract from: TBC

Advert closing date: 09/10/2025, 23:55pm

Number of positions available: 1

Please note that this vacancy may be taken down early depending on the number of applications received. We advise you to submit your application promptly.

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 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.

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

Background 

Unlocking the Vaults is a new project starting in November 2024, developed by the Public and Cultural Engagement team, based at The Exchange. The Exchange is a civic-facing venue in Centenary Square in the city centre with a focus on public and cultural engagement activities. The Exchange brings together the University’s research, teaching and networks to create a place of curiosity, celebration, collaboration and change. Through accessible public programmes and community engagement activity our ambition is to enable people from the city and wider region to get involved in the University’s work to address the complex challenges. The Exchange is located in the former Head Offices of Birmingham Municipal Bank, built in 1933. We are now actively celebrating the heritage of this unique place.

Role Summary 

This role will support the Public and Cultural Engagement team in the work they do to connect audiences through the Unlocking The Vaults project. This will include, research, interpretation, community engagement project, and a public programme. You will assist with visitor welcome and delivery of activities for a wide variety of public audiences in the work of the University of Birmingham at The Exchange. 

The role may include weekend and evening work and will be on an occasional basis in response to need.

Main Duties

• Depending on the project schedule duties may include any of the following

• Work with the Project Manager, Unlocking the Vaults and the Public Programmes Team and the Exchange Operational Team on the delivery of activity and interpretation.
• Develop resources for schools’ project
• Support research function
• Support development of workshops in schools and for community groups
• Develop and deliver themed guided tours
• Carry out participation / evaluation questionnaires with attendees.
• Collect and record evaluation data
• Assist with delivery of engagement activities for a wide variety of audiences.
• Provide a range of administrative and practical duties to ensure events run smoothly. 
• Co-ordinate booking sheets and maintain attendee logs using agreed systems.
• Assist with oral history collection and transcribing
• Organise materials and set out and replenish items. 
• Ensure that all duties comply with the Health and Safety, Data Protection Act and other legislation and identify and report any health and safety/operational concerns.
• To undertake any such duties as may reasonably be required by the project team.

Person Specification 

• To be positive, enthusiastic, friendly and to enjoy meeting and talking to people. 
• To have an interest and enthusiasm for cultural heritage and heritage engagement
• Experience of working in public facing capacity on events with communities and the public.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills 
• Excellent interpersonal skills with an ability to engage a wide range of internal and external stakeholders.
• Enthusiastic to explain the work and significance of the University of Birmingham and Unlocking the Vaults project to a wide range of audiences through guided tours and one-to-one interactions
• Ability to work effectively across different teams.
• Experience of self-management and administration within a busy and evolving environment
• An active interest in how Universities engage with public audiences
• Able to demonstrate energy, determination, and resilience
• Able to demonstrate the External Relations Values and Behaviours (innovative, responsible, collaborative, open and ambitious)
• Confident using IT, primarily Microsoft Word, Powerpoint, Outlook and Teams
• Ability to identify and report health and safety/operational concerns

For any informal queries, please contact Jane McArdle ([email protected])

View our staff values and behaviours here 

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.

The University of Birmingham restricts all students to working up to 20 hours per week during term time. If your application is successful and your course does not follow the usual academic term timetable (e.g.  PGT, PGR or PhD student), you and your supervisor must formally agree vacation periods if this role exceeds 20 hours per week. In addition to this, please be aware if you are an International student you will be required to apply to the Registry for the appropriate Authorised Absence. 

You are only eligible to apply to this role if you are a current University of Birmingham student. If you are not a University of Birmingham student your application will not be considered.

To work you will need to carry out a right to work check. These checks will need to be completed prior to work commencing.