Press Releases

Heritage sector opens doors to volunteers

Second ever UK Heritage Volunteer Conference comes to Cardiff

Volunteering can improve confidence, help people gain skills and experience and even transform people’s lives. But to what extend are the heritage sector’s doors open? Should the management of volunteers be different to the management of paid staff? These are some of the questions which will be asked at the second ever UK Heritage Volunteer Conference, held at National Museum Cardiff today (Monday, 8 May 2017).

 

Supported by the Heritage Volunteer Group and the Welsh Government, this is the only conference in the UK which looks at volunteering in the heritage sector - a sector which has many stories to tell. Some of these include dementia friendly underground tours at Big Pit National Coal Museum; a young volunteer scheme at the Egypt Centre Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, which has seen many former young volunteers progress in the field of heritage; and a loyal group of volunteers who work closely with staff to bring Plas Mawr Elizabethan townhouse alive.

 

Cabinet Secretary for the Economy and Infrastructure, Ken Skates welcomed delegates to the conference, launching the Fusion: Creating Opportunities through Culture 2017 – 18 scheme. Fusion works to break down barriers to cultural participation, particularly for individuals and communities experiencing economic disadvantage. Volunteering has been identified as a key priority for the Fusion programme in its next phase. Volunteering at a museum, heritage site or on an arts project increases confidence and wellbeing, and can arm people with skills they need to get into employment.

 

This Cabinet Secretary was followed by Sian Davies, Head of Participation and Progress at The Wallich who talked about the charity’s programme which encourages people to volunteer for them – the Resident and Service User Volunteer Programme (RSVP). Since 2011, 1,160 people have volunteered through RSVP contributing just under 30,000 hours to the charity in various roles. 

 

For centuries, volunteering has been the backbone of our communities. In Cardiff, volunteering led directly to the creation of VCS Cymru. Klavdija Erzen, Project Manager, VCS Cymru explained what motivates people to volunteer.

 

In 2016 – 17, 747 people volunteered their time at Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales’ seven national museums donating over 25,000 hours of work. Nia Williams, the Museum’s Director of Learning and Participation said:

 

“We are very lucky at Amgueddfa Cymru to be working with such a fantastic base of volunteers and help many of them, from varying backgrounds, find a way back into full-time employment. We value each and every one of our volunteers, who work closely with staff at our Museums across Wales and would like to thank Welsh Government, the Paul Hamlyn Foundation and the Heritage Lottery fund for supporting our volunteer programmes.

 

“With around 60% of our volunteers under the age of 35, it is a young volunteer population compared to the traditional format that can be seen in other heritage institutions.

 

“We have seen an increase in student participation and we believe this is due to the fact that we lowered our volunteer age to 14 and now includes young adults in schools and colleges.”