Archives Assistant - Birmingham, United Kingdom - Birmingham City University

Birmingham City University

Verified Company

Birmingham, United Kingdom

3 weeks ago

Posted by:

Tom O´Connor

beBee Recruiter

Part time

Description

Location:

Parkside
Salary:

- £32,556 to £43,048 Per Annum

Pro rata
Permanent
Post Type:
Part Time
Release Date:
07 March 2023
Closing Date:

hours BST on Tuesday 04 April 2023
Reference:

At the Faculty of Arts, Design and Media Archive, we are advertising for a part-time (0.6 FTE) permanent post of an
Archives Assistant based at the Parkside Building, Birmingham City University city-centre campus.

The Arts, Design and Media Archive holds thirty collections covering art and design, photography, education, music, media, jewellery, and fashion.

These are free inspirational resources for students, staff, researchers, and the general public.

We are looking for an enthusiastic and driven archives assistant to support the Keeper of the Archives in maintaining the day-to-day running of the Archive.

We are a small but talented team, hardworking, high-performing, and well-respected both within the intuition and beyond. The archives assistant will also be able to get involved in the Archive's ongoing projects.

Under the supervision of the Keeper of Archives, the archives assistant will collaborate and participate in the following:

Collections and Administration

Maintaining responsibility for the Arts, Design and Media (ADM) Archives in the absence of the Keeper of Archives.
Ensuring appropriate access to the collections in compliance with the ADM Archive policies and other applicable regulations and restrictions.
Preparing the reading room for users before opening it and closing it down again at the end of the working day.
Providing advice and guidance to reading room users with diverse enquiries.
Arranging and describing archival collections according to established standards and the ADM Archive policies and procedures including accessioning, processing, preservation, and preparation of finding aids.
Maintaining, adding, and retrieving information from cataloguing databases as well as other standard Office spreadsheets.
Assisting in implementing policies and procedures for electronic records.
Handling archival material appropriately and advising users how to do the same.
Undertaking research enquiries.
Contributing content to the ADM Archive website.
Assisting with outreach activities, including social media provision and exhibitions.
Producing summary box lists of archive materials and other basic listing tasks.
Repackaging documents to appropriate archival standards.
Assisting with the processing of new deposits of records.

User Services

Engaging, welcoming, and registering ADM Archive users.
Collecting and returning archive materials to and from storage.
Undertaking digitisation and photocopying duties.
Conducting tours of groups in the storage room.

The duties and responsibilities highlighted in this job description are indicative and may vary over time. Post holders are expected to undertake other duties and responsibilities relevant to the nature of the post.

Skills and Experience

Educated to degree level (or equivalent) or holds a relevant professional qualification.
Experience working in archives, information, or heritage sectors.
Experience in cataloguing and demonstrable ability to summarise information coherently and accurately from a variety of manuscripts, printed and digital sources.
Excellent IT skills, with competence in using Excel and standard Microsoft Office packages. Excellent keyboard skills and ability in data entry are required, with particular attention to detail, as well as knowledge and practice in using databases.
Good organisational skills with the ability to work efficiently, responsibility for meeting deadlines and a strong focus on delivering results.
Ability to sustain concentration for prolonged periods.
Ability to identify inaccuracies and mistakes in catalogue data, with meticulous attention to detail and accuracy.
Working as part of a team.

Working Conditions

Mainly indoor. The position requires working in an office environment and a controlled environmental storage room where there are a few physical discomforts, such as a bit of cold and dust.
Involves periods on feet, lifting and carrying heavy boxes using allocated equipment, and some ladder work to access archival materials in the storage facility are regular features of the job.
It may involve travel to other BCU sites across the city or training venues, possibly further afield on occasion.

In return we offer a generous pension and annual leave provision. We also provide access to excellent facilities on campus, including supportive family friendly policies.

With over 5,500 of our 24,000 students enrolled on courses in music, theatre, writing, media, digital technology, art, design, jewellery and architecture, the Faculty of Arts, Design and Media at Birmingham City University is one of Britain's leading providers of talented professionals to the cultural and creative industries.