Archive Collections Care Trainee in Edinburgh

Starting salary: £27,740 pro rata, per year

Contract type: Fixed term for 12 months

Grade: 1

Location: John Sinclair House, 16 Bernard Terrace, Edinburgh EH8 9NX

Working Hours: 35 hours per week

Interviews: To be held on Week Commencing 10 August 2026

You will be part of a team of four staff dedicated to collections care and conservation within the archive. In this role, you will be involved in all aspects of collections care, including improving the condition of archival material to support access, contributing to conservation projects, and managing risks to collections. This includes environmental monitoring, incident preparedness, and the management of physical storage and strong room infrastructure.

You will gain valuable insight into the role that conservation and collections care play in enabling both preservation and access, as well as developing practical experience in applying sector standards and best practice to achieve these aims. This post will be part of a wider programme of Traineeships. Trainees will have the opportunity to gain experience in their chosen field, increase knowledge of the wider sector, expand their professional network and have access to a wide range of learning resources and opportunities from the Engine Shed, Scotland’s dedicated Building Conservation Centre.

Benefits of joining us at Historic Environment Scotland:

• Enrolment onto a Civil Service Pension scheme – 28% employer contribution
• 25 days annual leave, pro-rata (increasing to 30 days after 3 years) + 11.5 public holidays
• Reimbursement for relevant professional subscriptions
• Support for further education and personal development
• Study leave for work related courses
• Flexible working hours (where appropriate)
• Free entry to all of our properties (with up to three guests)
• Free entry to English Heritage, Manx and Cadw properties

Key Responsibilities of this role:

• Support Conservation Projects: Assist conservators with collections care and conservation projects including rehousing the archive, supporting strong room upgrades and supervised mould remediation of archival materials.
• Documentation: Assist with backlog conservation data entry, location control and collections logistics. Contribute to training activities and incident preparedness.
• Public Service, Displays and Digitisation: Support conservation services for public and internal requests, including safe handling of objects, preparation and installation of internal displays and exhibitions, and organisation of conservation and storage supplies.
• Collections Management: Assist with environmental management processes, including Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and temperature/relative humidity monitoring. Contribute to the incident planning programme.
• Risk Management and Health & Safety: Contribute to health and safety compliance by supporting risk assessments, safe systems of work, and equipment servicing.

For this role, you will be based at John Sinclair House, Edinburgh. During your traineeship, you will have the opportunity to work across different teams within HES, attend site visits and assist on outreach projects. All travel expenses will be covered for additional travel from your base location (John Sinclair House), and all necessary training and equipment will be provided. Please note your standard commute will be at your own expense.

Key requirements of the role:

In order for you to be successful in this post, we will be looking for you to complete a cover letter which addresses:

• Why you are interested in the post with Historic Environment Scotland
• How you can meet each of the essential and desirable criteria (in up to 800 words), using examples of where you have used these skills in the past.

Please ensure that you provide real life examples for each of the criteria to be considered for this post. You can use examples of how you have met this criteria from your work life, home life, education or volunteer experience. Please read our CV and Cover Letter Guidance first before completing, as you will only be eligible for selection if you use examples of how you meet the essential and desirable criteria.

Essential Criteria:

• Demonstrable interest in working with heritage collections.
• Strong organisational skills, with a methodical approach, attention to detail, and the motivation to carry out routine and repetitive tasks accurately.
• Practical aptitude, including good manual dexterity and an understanding of the careful handling of fragile collection items. Physical capability to work at height and safely move and handle archive boxes and in line with manual handling risk assessments.
• Ability to work effectively as part of a team. Flexible attitude and willingness to develop new skills, adopt new procedures, and build knowledge of the HES archives and collections.
• Good written and verbal communication skills.
• Competence in using Microsoft Office applications, particularly Excel.
• A relevant qualification in collection care, collections management, conservation or related field such as fine art or history (SCQF Level 8 or equivalent).

Find out more about desirable skills and experience in our full job description.

We are dedicated to building a workforce which is reflective of diversity within Scotland. We warmly welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds, regardless of age, race, gender or gender identity, religious beliefs, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, or neurodiversity. In support of our Gaelic Language Plan, we welcome applications from Gaelic speakers.

We want every candidate to have the best chance to succeed during the recruitment process. If you require your application in an alternative format, please reach out to us via email at recruit@hes.scot or call our Head Office at 0131 668 8600 and speak to a member of our People Team.

Please note that, at this time, we are unfortunately unable to provide sponsorship as part of the recruitment process, therefore you must have current right to work in the UK to be considered for a post.

To submit your application online, please read our ‘How to Apply’ section followed by ‘Apply Now’ button to begin your application.