Enjoy this article?
Most Museums Journal content is only available to members. Join the MA to get full access to the latest thinking and trends from across the sector, case studies and best practice advice.
Volunteers across the UK have been recognised for their work helping museums and heritage sites engage with visitors.
The 13th annual British Museum and the Marsh Charitable Trust Volunteers for Museum Learning 2020 award follows a challenging period when many teams and individuals have continued to provide support during the pandemic.
The aim of the award is to recognise those volunteers who engage directly with museum visitors in any capacity. This could involve leading a school group, staffing an information desk, helping with family activities, running a guided tour or any of the other ways that they provide support to museum visitors.
The judges were staff from the Marsh Trust, staff and volunteers from the British Museum and a representative from Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales.
The overall national winner was the interpretation volunteer team at Cleveland Pools Trust in Bath.
The Volunteers for Museum Learning award forms part of a programme of awards presented by the Marsh Christian Trust in the fields of science, ecology, conservation, heritage, literature and volunteering.
Volunteers for Museum Learning 2020 winners
Scotland
- Edinburgh Living History Group Volunteers, Museums & Galleries Edinburgh, Edinburgh
North East
- Bailiffgate Museum & Gallery Volunteers, Bailiffgate Museum & Gallery, Northumberland
North West (Joint Winners)
- ‘Stories we Share’ Volunteers, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester
- ‘Philosophy Cafe’ Volunteers, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester
Yorkshire (Joint Winners)
- The Museums by Mail Volunteer Team, Sheffield Museums.
- The Preservative Party, Leeds City Museum, Leeds
East Midlands
- Do You See What I See? Project Volunteers, Charnwood Museum, Leicester
West Midlands
- The Reminiscence Team, Birmingham Back to Backs (National Trust), Birmingham
Wales
- Sam Powell, Egypt Centre, Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, Swansea University, Swansea
East of England
- ‘Museum From Home’ activity pack volunteers, Colchester + Ipswich Museums, Suffolk
South West
- Interpretation Volunteers, Cleveland Pools Trust, Bath
South East
- The ‘Diving Deep: HMS Invincible 1744’ volunteers, The National Museum of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth
London
- The Garden Guide Volunteers, Ham House Garden, Richmond
Northern Ireland
- Ian McLarnon Sinclair, Whitehead Railway Museum, Co Antrim
Most Museums Journal content is only available to members. Join the MA to get full access to the latest thinking and trends from across the sector, case studies and best practice advice.