The Volunteer Curation / Library Assistant opportunity is a behind-the-scenes volunteering role supporting the care, organisation, and documentation of the Natural Sciences Museum’s collections and library.
Volunteers can choose to focus on the Curatorial Assistant role, the Library Assistant role, or take part in both areas, depending on their interests and the museum’s current projects.
This is a great opportunity for anyone interested in museum collections, natural sciences, curation, cataloguing, archives, libraries, or heritage. You will work alongside museum staff and other volunteers in a supportive environment, gaining practical experience while helping to improve the organisation and accessibility of the museum’s collections.
This is a volunteer role, designed to provide experience, learning, and contribution. Volunteers support museum activities but do not replace paid staff or hold employee responsibilities.
Choose Your Area
You can volunteer in one or both of the following areas:
Curatorial Assistant
The Curatorial Assistant role focuses on the museum’s specimen collections and their long-term care and organisation.
Under staff guidance and supervision, you may assist with:
- Cataloguing specimens and collection material
- Checking and updating specimen records and associated information
- Sorting and organising museum collections
- Preparing specimens for appropriate archival storage
- Creating cavity mounts in archival foam to safely house and protect specimens
- Labelling and arranging collection material
- Helping improve the organisation and accessibility of collections
- Following museum procedures for the safe handling and care of specimens
Library Assistant
The Library Assistant role focuses on organising and cataloguing the museum’s book and reference collection.
Under staff guidance and supervision, you may assist with:
- Cataloguing books and other library material
- Sorting and organising the museum’s book collection
- Arranging books according to the museum’s chosen classification system
- Checking and updating library records
- Labelling and shelving books
- Identifying misplaced, duplicate, or uncatalogued material
- Helping improve the organisation and accessibility of the museum library
Volunteers who are interested in both areas are welcome to split their time between curatorial and library work.
What You’ll Learn & Gain
Depending on the area you choose, you may gain:
- Practical experience working with museum collections
- An introduction to museum cataloguing and documentation
- Experience with the safe handling and archival storage of specimens
- Understanding of specimen organisation and preventative conservation
- Experience cataloguing and organising a specialist book collection
- Organisational and attention-to-detail skills
- Insight into how museums care for, document, and make collections accessible
- Experience working as part of a museum team
- Insight into careers in museums, curation, collections management, conservation, archives, libraries, heritage, and natural sciences
This role is CV-building, particularly for anyone interested in museum studies, natural sciences, conservation, curation, archives, librarianship, heritage, or collections-based careers.
Time Commitment
- Volunteering opportunities will be arranged according to museum opening hours, staff availability, and current collections or library projects
- A regular commitment is encouraged to allow meaningful learning and contribution
- Volunteers can focus on one area or gain experience across both
- We understand school, college, university, employment, and exam pressures
Accessibility & Inclusion
The Natural Sciences Museum is committed to being inclusive.
We welcome volunteers from all backgrounds and will make reasonable adjustments wherever possible. Some collections tasks may involve prolonged periods of sitting or standing, detailed close-up work, or handling collection material. Please let us know how we can support you and discuss any adjustments you may require.
Pay: Up to £0.01 per year
Work Location: In person
