Volunteering at the Lapworth Museum
We benefit from the diverse skills, enthusiasm, and commitment that our volunteers bring!
The Museum is not currently recruiting volunteers, but feel free to check this page and our social media when we have new roles available.
Volunteer Coordinator - Catriona
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“I have been a volunteer for five years, mainly in the archives but also contributing to the Object of the Month series. I participated in the Unlocking Lapworth's Legacy Project, funded by Archives Revealed, which catalogued the Museum's extensive archive of material relating to all aspects of Charles Lapworth's life. It proved to be surprisingly relevant and relatable to modern concerns, such as letters dealing with Lapworth's significant mental and physical health problems throughout his long and highly successful career. Any communication captures a moment in time, but there is a particular pleasure to be gained from holding a handwritten letter and reading what one of Lapworth's closest academic collaborators has recorded concerning some 'geological gossip ', the 19th century equivalent of a water cooler moment or perhaps WhatsApp message.”
Archive Volunteer - Dorothy
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“Hello, my name is Ziyuan Cai, but you can call me Dorothy. I am a PhD student in the Department of History at the University of Birmingham, with a research focus on community engagement in Chinese museums. I am an Archive Volunteer, currently working on the Charles Ketley and Sir Charles Holcroft material, which has deeply impressed me. Every piece of paper still shows the original owner’s meticulous care, with everything neatly recorded in a diligent hand. Stepping into the Museum feels like entering a portal to the 19th and 20th centuries, where every building seems to revert to its appearance in old black and white photos; stepping out brings me back to the landscape of 2024, modern and vibrant, yet the academic atmosphere remains unchanged. I am very happy at such a magical museum and have enjoyed meeting a group of like-minded and friendly colleagues.”
Digitisation Volunteer - Kyle
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“I'm a current student in Palaeontology and Geology at the University of Birmingham, working as a volunteer on an ambitious fossil digitisation project at the Lapworth Museum. I have a passion for 3D modelling and printing, and aim to apply these techniques with my skills in palaeontology. My work will help record fossils which are fragile or on loan from external institutions, enabling the permanent preservation of these important specimens for display and educational purposes.”
Curatorial Volunteer - Roy
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Roy's Redevelopment Project report
“My volunteering at The Lapworth began in 2010, working on the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery collections, producing an assessment and condition report. This was followed by preparation of an inventory of the BMAG gemstone collection and later the Matthew Boulton mineral collection. I presented a conference poster on the Matthew Boulton collection at the History of Geology Group conference in London in 2014. From 2012, I worked as a member of the Project Team for the HLF–funded £2.7m Lapworth Museum Redevelopment Project, working as the project lead for the Mineral Wealth gallery. It was a great feeling to see the first visitors admitted to the gallery in the summer of 2016. Following that, I worked on the stores re-organisation project, as part of which my wife Mary and I re-organised the mineral collection and rehoused the specimens in chemical sequence according to Hey’s Chemical Index of Minerals. It has been a pleasure and a privilege to work alongside the Lapworth team and although I am currently taking a break from active volunteering due to a major book writing project, I remain on hand to assist with enquiries or provide mineralogical expertise as needed.”
Our Expectations
We hope that volunteering will be of mutual benefit to the volunteers and the Museum, allowing volunteers to develop new skills and gain interesting new experiences. We expect volunteers to treat the Museum collections with respect and sensitivity. We expect the volunteers to be polite and courteous to the public/visitors, other volunteers, staff, and students. We expect volunteers to observe the Lapworth Museum procedures-policies-standards. We hope that our volunteers will commit an appropriate time to their volunteering activities. Further details are available in our Volunteer Guidelines and Volunteer Agreement which you will receive when you begin volunteering.