Kettering Museum (Manor House Museum) is at an exciting turning point. With support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, North Northamptonshire Council is rebuilding the museum’s professional capacity and planning for its long-term future through Kettering Museum: Building a Resilient Future.

As Collections Manager, you’ll be the museum’s professional lead for its accredited collections. You’ll make sure they are properly cared for, documented and accessible. You’ll lead a comprehensive collections review and strengthen policies for documentation, storage and preventive conservation. You’ll also develop a volunteer and placement programme that gives local people the chance to get involved.

You’ll play a key part in shaping the new Kettering Museum Masterplan, working with our consultant team to set a sustainable vision for the museum’s future operations, buildings and interpretation.

We’re looking for someone with hands-on experience of accredited museum collections, a strong knowledge of Spectrum and preventive conservation, and the confidence to advise colleagues, partners and the public.

This is a fixed-term, full-time post for three years, based at Kettering Museum and the Alfred East Art Gallery.

Here at North Northamptonshire Council, we’re transforming for the better, using all our creativity and imagination to create the best life for our local people.

You’ll find that we have a wide range of careers that may be more surprising than you think!

Why choose us?

We offer a vibrant working environment with:

• a competitive salary
• a pension scheme, where we pay a significant contribution on top of your contribution. It provides life cover and ill-health protection.
• lots of opportunities to develop your skills, knowledge and potential in a large unitary council
• generous leave entitlement (28 days, rising to 33 days) and bank holidays, plus the option to buy up to an extra 10 days
• hybrid and flexible working arrangements, where practicable for service needs to help you with a healthy work-life balance.

We provide a range of great benefits such as an Employee Assistance Programme, an Employee Benefits Scheme, wellbeing support, travel rates at HMRC rates, as well as supporting a range of active Employee Network Groups.

You’ll lead every aspect of collections management at Kettering Museum, making sure the collections are cared for to national standards and ready for the future. Your work will include:

• leading collections management in line with Spectrum and Arts Council England’s Museum Accreditation requirements
• carrying out a comprehensive collections review, assessing significance, condition and rationalisation to inform future planning
• developing and embedding policies and procedures for documentation, storage, preventive conservation and emergency planning
• monitoring environmental conditions across the museum stores and putting preventive conservation measures in place
• keeping digital and physical records, including MODES, accurate and up to date
• working with our consultant team on the Kettering Museum Masterplan, advising on collections, access, interpretation and storage
• helping senior managers build the evidence to guide long-term decisions on the museum’s future
• setting up a volunteer and placement programme for documentation, cataloguing and digitisation
• representing the museum at regional and national heritage forums
• contributing to evaluation and reporting for The National Lottery Heritage Fund

You’ll be the go-to professional voice on collections care, advising colleagues and partners across the Council and the wider heritage sector.

You’ll be an experienced museum professional with a real passion for collections and the stories they tell. You’ll have worked with accredited museum collections and know what it takes to care for, document and manage them to national standards.

We’re looking for someone who has:

• hands-on experience of collections documentation, storage, environmental monitoring and preventive conservation
• a strong understanding of Spectrum, Museum Accreditation and national sector guidance
• experience of using a collections management system such as MODES
• the ability to plan and deliver collections work, from audits and cataloguing to object movements
• sound professional judgement on risk, conservation needs and priorities
• excellent communication skills, with the confidence to explain complex issues to non-specialists, senior officers and the public
• experience of advising, training or supporting colleagues and volunteers
• a collaborative, positive approach and a commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion

Experience of museum masterplanning, strategic development projects or funder reporting would be a real advantage. A relevant degree or postgraduate qualification, or membership of a professional body such as the Museums Association, would also be welcome. These aren’t essential.

Our Values and Behaviours

Our values define who we are and how we operate, by forming the foundation for how we interact with our customers, colleagues and provide our services. They are also at the forefront of our decision making and delivery and are:

Customer-focused
Respectful
Efficient
Supportive
Trustworthy

Our key commitments help ensure that the priorities we make, now and in the future, maintain the necessary breadth of focus in those areas that we believe matter most.

Disability Confident Employer

We are proud to be a recognised Disability Confident Employer and is committed to providing an inclusive recruitment process and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role.  

Our Employment and Disability Service provides bespoke support to individuals facing barriers to employment, helping them work towards their goals to start, stay and succeed in employment. For further information please click here The Employment and Disability Service (EADS) | North Northamptonshire Council

Armed Forces Community 

The council obtained the Gold status award for the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS).

Further information can be found at Jobs and careers | North Northamptonshire Council (northnorthants.gov.uk)