Enthusiastic, friendly faces are needed to help run a project which uses creative arts to improve the health and wellbeing of older people. The aim is to enable them to enjoy Nottingham City Museums and Galleries Service collections and exhibitions both in their care home and through supported assisted visits to sites.
Museum Arts and Care project volunteers will be asked to help deliver workshops which will include a range of activity. This may include poetry, storytelling, music, dance, drawing, painting, as well as viewing images on iPads and tablets. These activities will be themed around the handling collection – the temporary arts exhibition programme at Nottingham Castle and other cross-site exhibitions at Nottingham Castle, Wollaton Hall and Newstead Abbey.
Ideally, volunteers will be available throughout the year for at least one day per month. They will also need to attend a training programme that will cover working with service users/older people, museum object handling, use of new technologies, dementia awareness and facilitating group and one-to-one activities.
Councillor Dave Trimble, Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture, said: “This is an excellent opportunity for people interested in working in a creative field, wanting to use their artistic skills to support older people to engage with the arts and heritage. Our award-winning museums volunteering programme really values our volunteers and offers quality training and support. Volunteering is great to learn new skills, meet lots of interesting people, and to build up experience for your CV.”
Potential volunteers should send in an expression of interest no longer than a side of A4 which explains how they meet the following skills and experience:
- A pleasant and helpful manner and willingness to learn.
- Ability to work as part of a team with other volunteers and staff.
- Excellent communication and facilitation skills.
- Desire to respectfully engage with people from all walks of life.
- Aware of the needs of older people (this will also be covered in the training).
- Artistic skills and knowledge of e.g. poetry, storytelling, group facilitation, performing arts, music, dance, reminiscence, photography, drawing, painting, use of new technologies, sculpture and film (you do not need all of these artistic skills).
- A willingness to travel independently.
Expressions of interest are needed by 5pm on Tuesday 29 March 2016. These should be emailed to melissa.lewis@nottinghamcity.gov.uk
There will be a day of informal volunteer interviews on the 31 March 2016.
For further information about this volunteer role please contact
Melissa Lewis, Community Programmes Officer
email: melissa.lewis@nottinghamcity.gov.uk
Tel: 0115 87 62738