Volunteer

Here are some of the benefits of volunteering at the British Museum:

• Meet people from around the world
• Learn about world cultures
• Make new friends
• Share your passion and enthusiasm
• Learn new skills
• Become part of a supportive team and community
• Access to exclusive events and training for volunteers
• Enjoy the Museum and its collection

Read the British Museum's:

We're pleased to announce that we're currently recruiting for new volunteers across three of our volunteering programmes, so we hope there'll be something that appeals to everyone. None of our roles require previous Museum experience or specialised knowledge, we're simply looking for enthusiastic and dedicated individuals who want to be involved and help us share some of our stories with the public.

We currently have three roles available:

Friday night spotlight tour volunteer
Hands on desks volunteer
Eye-opener tour volunteer

You're welcome to apply for more than one role if several appeal to you. Please fill in the volunteer enquiry form and email it to [email protected]. You only need to fill out one form – there's a space provided to indicate interest in multiple roles.

The closing date for all applications will be midday on 29 September 2024.

Meet the team
If you have any further questions there are multiple opportunities to speak to a member of the Volunteers Office team. On 17, 20 and 24 September 12.30–14.00, you can visit the Museum and meet with a member of staff in the Great Court. This is a drop-in opportunity to stop by and ask questions or find out more about the programmes. You can locate the desk at the south side of the Great Court, near the Information Desk.

Webinar sessions
We'll also be hosting two free online webinars which will include a short presentation about the roles and volunteering generally, with time for questions afterwards.

The webinars will be held on:

Wednesday 11 September 18.00 – register
Friday 20 September 15.00 – register

If you have any other thoughts, or need additional information or help with your application outside of this time, please email the Volunteers Office at [email protected] or call us on +44 (0)20 7323 8853.

Volunteer-run Hands on desks allow visitors to handle real objects, and to find out more about the collection, through relaxed informal conversations.

Volunteers facilitate the object handling, encourage discussion and answer visitors' questions.

'The most enjoyable aspect of volunteering on the Hands on desks is the interaction with the visitors. Every time, I get to talk to different people from all over the world. Through discussions with them, I learn more about the objects.

'My favourite memory is when I met a visitor from Turkey and we discussed the Arabic coffee pot. She worked at a museum in Istanbul and was an absolute expert in the objects! So instead of me giving her an introduction, she explained to me the whole history of Turkish coffee. That really made my day!'

– Bihe, Islamic World Hands on desk 

Eye-opener tours introduce visitors to the Museum's collection through a variety of guided talks that take place in different galleries across the Museum. There are 15 tours that run every day on a range of topics.

'Since I was an undergraduate archaeology student in Syria, it was one of my dreams to visit the British Museum one day and see the objects that I spent my time studying in books and museum catalogues.

'In the beginning, I wasn't sure that I could conduct the Eye-opener tour. However, with the support of the Volunteers' Office and my fellow volunteers, I was able to overcome my worries.'

– Mohamad, Eye-opener tours

Volunteers are actively involved in delivering, shaping and developing guided LGBTQ tours of the British Museum. The Museum's collection – and the LGBTQ tours – both show that same-sex love, desire and gender diversity are an integral part of human experience. The way they have been expressed culturally has varied widely around the globe and over time.

'I've always been interested in the way the past has influenced who we are and I was keen to share my enthusiasm for that story with British Museum visitors.

'I believe that our LGBTQ tours are a great way of highlighting same-sex desire and gender fluidity through the exceptional range of historical periods and cultures covered by the museum's collections. People joining the tour get an understanding of how widespread these themes are in the human experience.'

– Chris, LGBTQ tours