We are an award winning, internationally recognised Living Museum with 50 historic buildings and gardens set in the beautiful South Downs National Park. With extraordinary buildings, fascinating artefacts, glorious surroundings and friendly, dedicated people, the Weald and Downland Living Museum is a unique and rewarding place to work.
Job Title: Duty Manager
Reports to: Senior Duty Manager
Working pattern: Friday, Saturday, Sunday 8.30 -17.00 - 25.5 hours - 3 shifts of 8.5 hours
Location: Weald & Downland Living Museum, Singleton, West Sussex
Contract type: Permanent
Salary: £17,702(£13.35 per hour)
About the role
The Duty Manager helps the museum run well each day and keeps the site safe and well-presented while it is open to the public. Working across a forty-acre site of historic buildings, gardens and working exhibits, the Duty Manager oversees the daily opening, running and closing of the site and makes sure it stays safe, secure and accessible throughout the day. It is a practical, hands-on role that calls for good judgement, reliability and the confidence to respond to whatever the day brings. That might mean closing a path or cordoning off an area when the weather or ground conditions make it unsafe and it means knowing when to handle matters directly and when to contact management for a decision.
Much of the role involves supporting and coordinating the volunteers and demonstrators who bring the museum to life and monitoring the quality of the visitor experience across the site so that any problems are dealt with quickly
Your responsibilities:
- Unlocking the site and ensuring that everything is presented and operating as it should be by carrying out pre-opening checks.
- Greeting volunteers on their arrival each morning and liaising with the Interpretation Team regarding changes on the day and reassignment of volunteers to ensure appropriate cover and interpretation in key areas.
- Supporting Volunteers with the clocking in, clocking out system, including coordinating and reassigning them to ensure cover in key areas.
- Attend or deliver the morning briefing, for the day's updates and relevant information sharing.
- Visiting all the volunteers and demonstrators on site at least twice a day, organising lunch relief, if needed.
- Providing First Aid cover, attending to accidents and emergencies and recording them in the Accident Book or recording near misses, when appropriate.
- Conducting site walk rounds throughout the day to monitor the quality of the visitor experience and facilities.
- Promptly responding to any aspects of the visitor experience and facilities not up to our desired standards, with timely reporting to the relevant team.
- Responding to a wide range of day-to-day situations and contacting a member of the management team when a decision or their input is needed
- Directing any customer complaints to the admissions desk in the first instance
- Occasionally organising coach and car parking.
- Logging or flagging any defect identified on site to the relevant team (Maintenance)
- Locking the site at the end of the and carrying out a final walk through to ensure all areas have been vacated by members of the public, left in an appropriate condition and are properly secured.
- Ensuring all lights and water taps are turned off at the end of the day in all areas of the site.
- Setting the intruder alarms of multiple buildings.
- Passing on relevant information to the Duty Manager working the next day, using the Handover book.
What we offer:
- Company pension scheme
- Free car parking
- Staff discount in the museum shop and café
- Free entry to the museum for friends and family
- Access to learning and development opportunities
- The opportunity to work in a unique heritage environment
- Supportive team within a charity dedicated to preserving historic buildings and rural life
This job description is not exhaustive and may be reviewed and updated
Our heritage is richer when it includes all voices. We are working to make our organisation an open, inclusive, and accessible place for people from every background. If you share our passion for connecting people with history in meaningful and inclusive ways, we’d love to hear from you. We’re happy to discuss any support you might need during the application process.
All candidates must already hold the legal right to work in the United Kingdom.
Please send a covering letter, CV and answer the following questions:
- Regular work on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays is required. Are you available to work these days on an ongoing basis?
- The museum is in a rural location near Singleton with limited public transport, particularly at weekends. Do you have a reliable means of getting to and from the site for the shifts required?
- First Aid training can be provided, but the role requires you to become and remain First Aid qualified. Are you willing to do this?
- The role involves working outdoors and on your feet across a large site in all weathers. Are you able to carry out this kind of work, with any reasonable adjustments we are able to make?
Closing date: 9 August 2026
Pay: £17,702.00 per year
Work Location: In person
