Bethan

Bethan is a volunteer with the Schools Team at the Museum of London Docklands, and has given over 100 hours of volunteering time this year alone. She is very organised and makes the most of her time at the Museum. Bethan is the first person that school groups meet when they visit the museum and she sets the tone of their visit with a big smile of her face and a welcoming introduction. She has become a role-model for the pupils visiting the Museum, who have been inspired by the example she is setting as a volunteer.

Bethan is very hard working, great fun to be around and generous. She works well with others and has also supported the training of new Schools volunteers. Bethan consistently makes outstanding contributions in her role, and the Schools Team have said that every day she supports the Schools programme is a brilliant day for them. It’s not unheard of to see her handing out jam tarts or rhubarb cake in the staff room at the museum or to anyone passing through!

Hollie

Hollie is a volunteer at the Archaeological Archive and has taken part in two projects. The first was as part of a team of young autistic adults working on a collections care, digital cataloguing and public engagement project. Throughout the ten-week project Hollie overcame many personal challenges and built her confidence week on week to the point where she was able to step out of her comfort zone and embrace the public engagement aspect of the project on the final day. She quickly bonded with the rest of the team and became a key member of the group, creating a friendly and positive group dynamic which encourage other volunteers to increase their confidence.

In her second project, Hollie was able to use her previous experience to help the new team of volunteers and helped to catalogue and photograph over 500 artefacts. During the project, she was asked to be interviewed for her college magazine and confidently took ownership of her work as she showed the interviewer around the archive and explained about the work that she had been doing. The article helped to promote the Archive’s engagement work with young people and Hollie was an excellent ambassador for youth volunteering.

George

George began volunteering at the Museum of London as part of the work experience week and despite initially seeming shy, Museum staff were quickly impressed with his confidence in speaking to colleagues and with members of the public. He was willing to complete any task put to him and actively engaged with a variety of tasks, ranging from public engagement to the evaluation of schools sessions to proofing websites.

George’s research skills and his ability to reinterpret the collections were particularly impressive. He researched into the history of his favourite object in the Museum, one which is hidden in the galleries and would have taken a lot of research to find. George presented the object and its history to ten staff members from a variety of departments, compelling his audience with a twenty minute story. His delivery was so confident and well researched that it is still remembered among museum staff today.

George returned to the Museum to support a Collecting Cultures film making project in 2017. Under the guidance of a professional film-maker, George and two other young volunteers produced a short film about a photographer whose work had been acquired for the Museum’s collection. He has now gone on to carry out a six week placement at the British Museum and hopes to return to the Museum of London to help mentor the next Collecting Cultures project.

Georgie

Georgie is a very committed member of the Hands-on history object handling team. She helped at 18 sessions in her free time while being at school and also attended a number of training and briefing sessions. Georgie has an expansive knowledge which always impresses the public and has been committed to all aspects of her role.

Georgie is very confident around both adults and children and is a great team leader. She has given up her time to give feedback on her volunteering experiences which has then been used to shape the role itself. Without Georgie’s enthusiasm and commitment, some of the 1,600 visitors the team has interacted this year would not have been attended to. As well as helping the Hands-on history team, Georgie has assisted at family festivals and many other events, participating in all the different activities she does with enthusiasm.

Olivier

Olivier started at the museum as a Visitor Experience volunteer. His keen interest in history and museums made him eager to identify with a role that he could fully commit to and one that would support the museum in its initiatives. Olivier has proven himself to be clever, proactive and has easily understood what is required of him. He was quick to learn all aspects of the role, supporting the Visitor Services team and responding to their requests as quickly and efficiently as he could.

Earlier this year he applied for the museum’s Apprenticeship programme and was successfully offered the role of Audio Visual Team Administrator and is currently working towards his Level 3 in Business Administration. Olivier also took part in the Successful Volunteer Involvement Seminar run at the Museum of London Docklands and spoke confidently about his experience as a young volunteer to over 70 people from 50 organisations. He also took part in the panel Q&A session afterwards providing feedback and contributing answers.

Olivier has excelled in his role as a volunteer and on his own merits and abilities has achieved a place as an Apprentice within the museum showing a true development of achievement.

Ben

Ben volunteers with the Family and Early Years Team helping them set up events and workshops for families and children. He has proven to be extremely reliable and eager to volunteer his time, throwing himself into any event and has had a great impact on the children he has worked with. In addition to his volunteering Ben works as a full time secondary school history teacher so giving what little time he has to spare to volunteer has been truly remarkable.

Jennie

Jennie is a School Volunteer for the Museum of London and has become one of their most valuable volunteers in supporting the learning department and the front of house team. She has volunteered in areas across the department, from schools to ESOL groups, always demonstrating a friendly manner and positive attitude.

Jennie has also worked extensively with families and adults in onsite learning sessions and outreach groups in schools. She has volunteered with the Museum’s Special Education Needs teaching programme and has helped out in projects such as the Children’s Takeover Day at the Museum of London Docklands, where she really excelled and demonstrated an ability to teach and guide sessions.

Jennie has shown real dedication to her role of working with vulnerable groups, such as ESOL learners and students with a wide range of physical and learning needs. Consistency and seeing a familiar face is very valuable to them and so the time and effort which she has put into her work has been greatly appreciated not only by the Museum but also by the students she supports.