Conservator: Preventive - London

Role Summary Conservator: Preventive Collection Care Full-time, 41 hours per week (including one hour paid lunch break) Permanent £32,338 per annum Application deadline: 12pm (midday) on Friday 24 January 2025 About the role: To contribute and advise on the care of the collection through monitoring and reporting on the environment, and other preventive conservation measures in support of the museum's operating plan, and to contribute to public outreach activities of the Department of Collection Care. This role requires the post holder to have specialist knowledge and experience in the area of preventive conservation and collection care. Key areas of responsibility: • To contribute to the preventive conservation of collections made of a wide range of organic and inorganic materials. • To advise colleagues and stakeholders on preventive conservation, collection care and risk management related matters. • To propose preventive conservation led solutions for the display of objects. • To contribute to the care of the collection through dedicated projects on collections in store. • To assist with the care of the collection through monitoring, data analysis, and reporting on display and storage environment, and supporting Integrated Pest Management. • To work collaboratively with colleagues within the department and across the museum. • To contribute to the development of new preventive or interventive measures. About you: • Recognised professional conservation qualification to degree level or equivalent, with emphasis on preventive conservation. • Demonstrable practical preventive conservation skills • Understanding of mechanisms involved in material deterioration. • Sound knowledge of contemporary principles and practice in preventive conservation • Involvement in display and storage related activities • Understanding of conservation theory and ethical decision making • Employment within the heritage sector (e.g. museum, gallery, library, archive sector) • Able to multi-task while working under pressure. • Experience of planning own work to deliver set objectives on time and to budget About the British Museum: Founded in 1753, the British Museum’s remarkable collection spans over two million years of human history and culture. The Museum is a leading visitor attraction, and its world-famous collection includes the Rosetta Stone, Egyptian mummies, the Sutton-Hoo finds, and the Lewis Chessmen. The Museum also holds an extensive collection of prints and drawings spanning 600 years, including works by the greatest graphic artists such as Dürer, Michelangelo and Rembrandt. You can view a selection of our impressive collection of prints and drawings in our virtual gallery. The Museum offers a competitive benefits package including: • Generous annual leave allowance of 25 days (rising to 30 days after 10 years’ service) plus 2.5 privilege days and plus bank holidays. • Membership of the civil service defined benefit pension scheme (find out here what benefits a civil service pension provides). • Free entry to a wide range of museums and exhibitions • Participation in private and public Museum activities, including talks by leading curators from around the world and behind-the-scenes opportunities to learn how museums care for and manage their extraordinary collections. • Interest-free travel, bicycle, and rental deposit loans • Professional and personal development opportunities • Employee Assistance Programme • Discounts on food and gift shop purchases Additional details: For more information about this role, please see the job description. If you have any additional needs that we should be aware of to support you with your application, please provide details to We have a legal responsibility to ensure that employees have the right to work in the UK. If you currently do not hold the right to work in the UK, we can only sponsor a limited number of roles that meet eligibility criteria. To offer a sponsorship, the job role you apply needs to be in the list of eligible occupations: Additionally (with some limited exceptions), the role will need to meet the minimum salary threshold of £38,700 or the going rate for the job, whichever is the highest. You can find more information here: The British Museum is committed to promoting equality of opportunity for all staff and job applicants. We aim to create a working environment in which all individuals can make best use of their skills, free from unlawful discrimination or harassment. We value the benefits that a diverse workforce brings to a museum which represents world culture. The Museum is committed to ensuring that no job applicant suffers unlawful discrimination because of any protected characteristics. Our recruitment procedures aim to ensure that individuals are treated because of their relevant knowledge, skills, and experience. We offer a flexible way of working scheme that allows our employees to work remotely in a way that suits them and the organisation. We welcome questions and conversations at interview stage about how flexible working could work for you. We would typically see this role as working on site about 4/5 days a week. The Museum also adheres to the HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) for pre-employment screening of Civil Servants.