Senior Interpretation Planner: Exhibitions

We are seeking an exceptional Senior Interpretation Planner: Exhibitions to lead the development of ambitious interpretation strategies for major special exhibitions and changing free displays. This is a rare opportunity for an experienced museum interpretation professional to influence how audiences engage with collections, stories, and ideas at one of the world's most dynamic cultural organisations.

Working at the intersection of curatorial expertise, visitor insight, community engagement, design, and storytelling, you will play a pivotal role in creating engaging, accessible, and meaningful experiences for diverse audiences. You will lead on the development and shaping of content and interpretation during initial project stages and oversee its implementation and delivery, ensuring that exhibitions are audience-focused, intellectually rigorous, emotionally engaging and creatively inspiring.

This is a diverse and varied role, and you will be working on multiple exhibitions and displays, in various stages of development, at any one time. This role offers the opportunity to:

• Influence the visitor experience at a nationally and internationally significant museum.
• Work alongside world-leading curators, designers, and cultural professionals.
• Contribute to ambitious special exhibitions and support transformative long-term projects.
• Develop and shape innovative approaches to interpretation, audience engagement, and inclusive storytelling.
• Help define museum experiences for millions of visitors.

If you are an experienced interpretation professional who combines strategic thinking, creative storytelling, audience advocacy, excellent time management and prioritisation and collaborative approaches to working, we would love to hear from you.

You'll have:

• Extensive expertise in interpretation planning and audience-focused exhibition development.
• Significant experience writing and developing interpretive concepts and content in the museum or heritage interpretation fields.
• Strong writing and editorial skills with the ability to communicate complex ideas clearly and engagingly.
• Experience conducting or commissioning visitor research and applying audience insight to project development.
• A strong track record of working collaboratively across multidisciplinary teams.
• Experience managing staff, consultants, or creative teams in a similar environment.
• Excellent influencing, diplomacy, and stakeholder-management skills.
• The ability to balance multiple high-profile projects in a fast-paced environment and prioritise accordingly.
• Experience of working with a wide range of public including young people and community groups would be advantageous in this role.

Key areas of responsibility include:

• Interpretive Planning and Management: Develop innovative interpretation plans for special exhibitions and other key projects, and support Interpretation Managers in delivering these.
• People Management: Lead, motivate and line-manage Interpretation Managers and manage the work of contracted staff.
• Audience Advocacy: Provide expert advice on interpretation planning, helping define a clear intellectual structure for allocated projects.

The British Museum is undertaking its biggest transformation since its founding nearly 300 years ago. This physical and intellectual transformation includes large scale building and gallery transformation, new ways of connecting with audiences and different ways of working.

At the British Museum, we believe our people are at the heart of everything we do and have designed a benefits package that goes beyond the ordinary. Our full list of benefits can be found here, but we've outlined some highlights below:

• Free exhibition entry for you and guests, exclusive private views, ICOM and reciprocal museum access.
• Civil Service Pension Scheme defined benefit with 28.97% employer contribution.
• 25 days' annual leave plus bank holidays and 2.5 privilege days (and +5 days after 10 years).
• Peer support and allyship with five diversity networks for community.
• Learning and development through courses, mentoring and Athena as well as support for professional qualifications.
• Enhanced parental leave including maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave.
• Support for carers through Employers for Carers.

Our values drive everything we do, from how we handle our objects to how we work in our team to fostering a culture where everyone feels heard and empowered:

• Care Deeply
• Embrace the Unknown
• Spark Curiosity
• Value Many Voices

These are a core part of how we recruit. Throughout the application, interview and selection process, we look for examples of how candidates demonstrate these behaviours in their own work and experiences.

If you have any additional needs that we should be aware of to support you with your application, please provide details to bmrecruit@britishmuseum.org.

Right to Work: The British Museum holds a Skilled Worker sponsor licence. Applicants are responsible for determining whether the advertised salary and role meet current UKVI sponsorship requirements and for ensuring they have, or can obtain, the appropriate right to work in the UK.