Overview
Role Summary
Conservator: Organics
Collection Care and Moves
Full-time: 41 hours per week (including one hour paid lunch break)
Fixed-term for 12 months
£39,105 per annum
Application deadline: 12pm (midday) on 28 October 2025
This role is being initially advertised on an internal basis. If there are any issues with applying, please email BMRecruit@britishmuseum.org
About the role:
We are looking to appoint a specialist Conservator: Organics that can lead in the care of the collection through a combination of interventive and preventative measures, supporting a conservation focused storage project related to world culture materials.
The appointed Conservator: Organics will have excellent knowledge in the care and conservation of 3D organic materials. Significant post-graduate experience of working with world culture objects is also desirable. Additional contributions may also be required to other projects as assigned, ensuring the delivery of the Organic Conservation team’s workplan.
Key areas of responsibility:
- To condition assess objects made of organic materials, and in particular 3-d objects.
- To conserve and prepare a collection of world culture objects for storage and enabling research.
- To advise on the care and conservation of collections made of textiles and organic materials.
- To underpin care of the collection through research, documentation, surveys, data collection, and analysis.
- To ensure best practice and compliance with latest health and safety legislation.
- To contribute to the conservation of materials/object types outside own area of
- expertise as necessary.
- To work collaboratively with colleagues within the department and across the museum.
- To develop new preventive or interventive measures as appropriate.
- To proactively engage with the department’s outreach activities through public speaking and publication.
- To change the focus of work in line with museum priorities.
- Other duties as assigned.
Please see JD for further key responsibilities.
About you:
- Recognised professional conservation qualification to degree level or equivalent experience, with the conservation of the material relevant to the specialism of the role.
- Working towards PACR accreditation
- Excellent demonstrable practical skills in the conservation of 3-d organic materials.
- Experience with loans and display related activities.
- Excellent knowledge of contemporary principles and practice in preventive conservation.
- Strong understanding of conservation theory and ethical decision making.
- Relevant knowledge of health and safety.
- Delivery of projects on time and to appropriate standards.
- Good computing skills and proficiency with a range of IT systems.
- Experience of devising preventive measures.
- Excellent problem solving and decision-making skills.
- Some experience of management issues relating projects.
Full Person Specification in the JD.
About the British Museum:
Founded in 1753, the British Museum’s remarkable collection spans over two million years of human history and culture. The Museum is one of the leading visitor attractions and its world-famous collection includes the Rosetta Stone, the Parthenon sculptures, Egyptian mummies, the Admonitions Scroll, and the Amaravati sculptures.
The Museum offers a competitive benefits package including:
- Generous annual leave allowance of 25 days (rising to 30 days after 10 years’ service) plus 2.5 privilege days and plus bank holidays
- Membership of the civil service defined benefit pension scheme (find out here what benefits a civil service pension provides).
- Free entry to a wide range of museums and exhibitions
- Participation in private and public Museum activities, including talks by leading curators from around the world and behind-the-scenes opportunities to learn how museums care for and manage their extraordinary collections
- Interest-free travel, bicycle and rental deposit loans
- Professional and personal development opportunities
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Discounts on food and gift shop purchases
Additional details:
For more information about this role, please see the job description.
The interviews are expected to take place on Monday 3 November 2025.
If you have any additional needs that we should be aware of in order to support you with your application, please provide details to bmrecruit@britishmuseum.org.
The British Museum is committed to promoting equality of opportunity for all staff and job applicants. We aim to create a working environment in which all individuals can make best use of their skills, free from unlawful discrimination or harassment. We value the benefits that a diverse workforce brings to a Museum which represents world culture. The Museum is committed to ensuring that no job applicant suffers unlawful discrimination because of any protected characteristics. Our recruitment procedures aim to ensure that individuals are treated because of their relevant knowledge, skills and experience.
We offer a flexible way of working scheme that allows our employees to work remotely in a way that suits them and the organisation. We welcome questions and conversations at interview stage about how flexible working could work for you. We would typically see this role as working on site about 5 days a week.
The Museum also adheres to the HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) for pre-employment screening of Civil Servants.
