Heritage Apprentice

Job Description

• Lowestoft Town Council
• Address: Battery Green Road, Lowestoft, Suffolk NR32 1DE
• Salary: £7.55 per hour,National Apprenticeship Rate
• Hours: 37 hours per week, including some weekends and out of office hours
• Contract: Fixed Term Apprenticeship for 18 months
• Reference: 0249

The Town Hall is a Grade II listed landmark and the most prominent building on the historic High Street of Lowestoft. Owned by Lowestoft Town Council (LTC) since April 2017, it has been vacant and boarded up since its previous owners moved out in 2015. Lowestoft Town Council has been successful in gaining funding for the restoration and adaption of the building as well as the delivery of a comprehensive programme of heritage activities that will enable participants to learn and engage with the heritage of the town and bring communities together enhancing community pride. Funding support has come from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Towns Fund, East Suffolk Council as well as Lowestoft Town Council.

Extensive consultation has demonstrated that the Town Hall retains a strong importance to the local community who overwhelmingly support the building having a community future. The aim is to deliver a multifunctional building housing a range of heritage, community, and commercial uses to ensure its long-term sustainability. This will act as a driver for economic growth and community pride, inclusion and wellbeing.

The project

The Grade II listed Town Hall will have a permanent heritage gallery and information point, with adjacent community gallery/exhibition space/ arts and crafts spaces and co working space. The building will also become an events venue and office for the Town Council and local registrars.

The Town Hall will also be a collaborative space – acting as a venue for outreach activities, showcasing artefacts from other heritage/ organisations in the town and signposting people to them.

A five-year activity programme has been devised to specifically target groups currently under served by heritage in partnership with organisations working locally. Examples of activities to be delivered include:

• Reminiscence opportunities to enable intergenerational connections.
• Digitise the Lowestoft Town Council collection of artefacts and paintings.
• Creative workshops and talks linked to exhibitions and activities.
• Run heritage skills work placements for young people delivered in partnership with East Coast College and heritage organisations.
• Continue with ‘Town Hall Creates’ linking in with the Food in Schools Holiday (FISH) project where participants will have the opportunity to learn more about the town’s heritage and gain artistic skills.
• Deliver creative sessions with partners focusing on people on an employment pathway.

The role

The Heritage Apprentice role is an exciting entry level opportunity to develop skills in both planning and delivery of cultural learning and participation activities as well as experience in collections management.

The Heritage Apprentice supports key parts of the Town Hall project activity programme which includes cultural education workshops and community engagement projects. This role will be supported by heritage and art professionals with diverse experience and will provide the postholder with many of the building blocks and skills require for a future career within heritage, culture, and arts

As part of this 18-month full-time placement the candidate will undertake a Level 3 apprenticeship in Cultural Learning and Participation delivered by Westminster Adult Education Service (WAES)

This is an entry level post aimed at providing opportunities for people without a degree level qualification a first step into working in the heritage sector. This role is designed to offer an alternative entry route into a museum career. As such we encourage applications from all backgrounds, particularly those which are currently under-represented in the sector.

Under the guidance of the Town Hall Project team assist in the delivery of the activity plan and in preparations for the Town Hall live running including but not limited to:

• Deliver outreach activities in collaboration with project volunteers, including at venues such as the streets of Lowestoft, the beach, community groups and schools, to capture stories for the Lowestoft Stories oral history project and raise awareness about the Town Hall project and upcoming events and activities. This is likely to include lifting and potentially energetic activities.
• Collaborate with staff and partners to deliver the activities outlined in the Lowestoft Town Hall Project activity plan.
• To support with the creation of resources and procure props for the engagement activities.
• To support with the delivery of the Lowestoft Town Council Collection digitisation activity.
• To support with providing content for the Town Hall social media platforms.
• To support with collections management, research, exhibition curation, visitor services and volunteer management.
• To support with capturing evaluation data for activities.
• To carry out any other tasks necessary to ensure the project is successful

Person Specification:

You will need the flexibility, eagerness, curiosity to learn and the positive approach needed to work in a community heritage setting.

You will need to be:

• Reliable and hardworking – able to turn up on time and complete tasks independently
• Interested in working in a heritage attraction, museum, or in the arts
• The enthusiasm and imagination to inspire and engage people in local heritage and make them feel valued
• Experience of engaging with the public, preferably in a customer facing environment
• Good written and oral communication skills
• Organised and confident communicator – helping volunteers to understand their responsibilities, responding to enquiries on the phone and by email, and able to talk to individuals from a variety of backgrounds
• Positive and open attitude to learning and skills development
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team, whilst using their own initiative
• Commitment to the role
• IT literate, able to use Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, and Outlook) social media to engage audiences

For more information

Please Read The Job Description (Word) .

To find out more about us, please visit our website .

How To Apply

Please request an application pack by emailing admin@lowestofttowncouncil.gov.uk .

Closing date: 12pm, 4 July 2025.

Interview date: Week commencing 14 July 2025.

You will be required to complete a DBS check as a condition of employment.

Must spend a significant proportion of working hours in Lowestoft, although some home working will be possible. However, must have the willingness to travel independently to London, once a month, or to other locations as required.

About The Team

IMPORTANT PLEASE READ BEFORE APPLYING

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