Job description
Learn about the role, responsibilities and what the employer is looking for.
Are you a conservation and collections care leader who looks for safe, practical ways to provide object care and make collections more accessible - and excited by the chance to shape how a national collection understands and manages its hazards?
About us
The Science Museum Group (SMG) runs the world's largest group of science museums and cares for an astonishingly diverse collection of 7.3 million items spanning science, technology, engineering, medicine, transport and media - from fragile photographs to working locomotives. Our Inspiring Futures strategy sets out our ambition to provide high-quality care for the SMG Collection and make it more accessible to the public and researchers. We are an ambitious group, with major Masterplan and capital programmes across our museums, a busy programme of exhibitions and loans, and plans to further improve storage at the Science and Innovation Park in Wroughton, already home to over 320,000 objects in the sector-leading Hawking Building.
About the role
As Head of Conservation and Collections Care, you will lead conservation, collections care and the management of hazards in collections across our five museums and collections management facility. You will set and maintain the standards that keep the collection safe, while making sure it can be displayed, loaned, moved, researched and enjoyed. You will be a key voice on major projects, working with Masterplan, Exhibitions, Estates, Logistics and Registration colleagues to make sure collections care is built into how we plan and deliver.
Our collection includes an unusually wide range of hazardous materials, including radioactive objects, controlled drugs and asbestos. You will provide organisational leadership for compliance in this area, act as SMG's lead contact with regulators, and direct Empowering Safety, our conservation science research programme into hazardous materials. Our goal is to turn this challenge into an opportunity and establish SMG as a leader in the sector. You will also lead the team responsible for collections emergency planning and salvage, act as Silver command for the Science and Innovation Park, and help build collections risk - including climate resilience - into our business continuity planning.
The role can be based at any of our sites in London, Wroughton, Manchester, Bradford or York, and requires on site work at least two days a week. As this is a Group-wide role, you will travel regularly, including frequent time at Wroughton, so candidates based in the north should expect more travel.
You will lead a department of around 50 staff, with eight direct reports, coaching them for success and development. Reporting to the Associate Director, Collections Services, you will be an active member of the Collections Services senior management team. This is a great role to step into at a time of real ambition for the collection.
This is a permanent, full-time role (35 hours per week) with a salary of £64,927 if based in London, or £58,434 if based elsewhere. The role can be based at any of our sites in London, Wroughton, Manchester, Bradford or York. Hybrid working is available, with at least two days a week on site.
About you
We're keen to see applications from experienced conservation and collections care leaders in museums, heritage or similar organisations, who are
pragmatic and solutions-focused in their approach to risk. You will look for the safe, practical way to say 'yes, and here's how', balancing the long-term care of the collection with what the organisation needs to deliver. We would welcome applications from experienced
people leaders who enjoy developing teams, sharing specialist knowledge and bringing people with them through change.
We're particularly interested in candidates with substantial
Health and Safety and compliance knowledge, ideally in relation to collections or hazardous materials. Don't worry if you haven't encountered every type of hazard before: very few people will have worked with the range we hold, and we will support you to develop the specialist knowledge the role needs. You will bring a track record of
planning and delivering complex projects and work programmes, an
evidence-led approach to decision making, and the ability to take a steady approach and give clear direction
under pressure when something does go wrong.
As this role works with colleagues right across the Group, we're also looking for well-developed
stakeholder management and
influencing skills. You will be comfortable building relationships with colleagues, partners and regulators, understanding different perspectives and negotiating workable solutions. Experience of
emergency planning, business continuity or climate resilience, or of
working with regulators to shape requirements, would be a real bonus.
Above all, we're looking for someone excited by what conservation and collections care can achieve at SMG - and motivated to help make our collection safer, better understood and more accessible, within a collaborative and inclusive organisation.
Don't feel you meet all the criteria? We welcome an application even if your experience doesn't match directly. With your transferable skills, you could be the right candidate for this, or other opportunities that we have.
Applying
View the Vacancy Information Pack listed under 'Attachments' on the vacancy listing on our website for more details about the role and the application process or click 'Apply Online' to submit an application.
What we offer
Working with a world-leading museum group that offers access to truly unique environments and collections, you'll benefit from the perks listed below, as well as full support for life events such as parental and adoption leave, sickness, and career breaks.
- All our colleagues can access an employee assistance programme and other wellbeing support.
Meaningful work. We're a mission-led organisation where the work you do supports us in Inspiring Futures.
Career growth. We offer enhanced support with personal and professional development.
Work/life balance. We offer 27 days annual leave in addition to bank holidays, along with flexible policies which support you and your home life.
Healthcare cash plan. Digital health tools, gym discounts and cashback towards your everyday healthcare costs.
Colleague networks. Our colleague-led networks are an informal forum for colleagues to come together to discuss topics of shared interest and lived experience. They create a space for people to exchange ideas, discuss best practice, socialise and build a sense of community.
Enhanced contributory pension. To support you in saving for the future.
Interest-free loans. When you need a little extra cash for life events or home improvements.
Great discounts. Free entry to exhibitions, discounts in our shops and cafes, and access to other museums in the NMDC network.
Open for All is one of the Science Museum Group's five core values and sets out our important aspiration to be a place for everyone. We are working hard to understand our organisation better and to develop a culture that recognises and values different backgrounds, mindsets, skills, experience, knowledge, and expertise. By having greater diversity, we believe that we will be a stronger and better organisation, capable to continue to
Inspire Futures.