Manchester Jewish Museum

Volunteers

Become an MJM Volunteer

Do you want to be part of a museum team? Do you want to help bring people together and share Jewish stories with the world? Do you want to support one of Manchester’s most beautiful historic buildings?

Whether you’re interested in learning new skills, giving something back or just making new friends and being part of a team, why not get in touch?

We’re always looking for new volunteers, so if you have energy and love working with the public then please get in touch! Students welcome.

Get in touch

Find out more about our volunteer scheme and whether it’s right for you below:

WE ARE BETTER TOGETHER

Who are Manchester Jewish Museum volunteers?

Our volunteers are an integral part of the Manchester Jewish Museum Team. They enrich the experience of our visitors and enable us to engage and connect with as many people as possible.

Our volunteers are accepting and welcome all, respecting differences and seeking common ground with others. They are helpful, supportive and make a positive difference.

We appreciate all the valuable contributions our volunteers make through their generous donations of their time, energy and expertise.

Can I volunteer?

Everybody is welcome to join our volunteer team. We promote acceptance, celebrate diversity and aim to make the experience of all our volunteers impactful and memorable. You don’t need to be Jewish to volunteer with us, you just need an enthusiasm for connecting people together and sharing Jewish stories and culture.

We are looking for volunteers who are imaginative, open minded and can bring lots of enthusiasm to their role.

What will I be doing?

Our volunteers support the museum through welcoming our visitors, preparing and serving nourishing meals in our café, supporting delivery of our events and activities and guiding people through our gallery and synagogue. Scroll down to see a list of our current volunteer roles.

Why should I volunteer?

If you volunteer at Manchester Jewish Museum you will have opportunities to:

  • Meet new people and be part of an enthusiastic, welcoming and inclusive team.
  • Volunteer inside one of Manchester’s most beautiful historic buildings.
  • Develop transferable and/or specialist skills increasing confidence and potential employability.
  • Engage with local Jewish heritage and culture and connect with our surrounding communities.
  • Make connections to make things better – being part of a team and having a strong sense of purpose in the volunteer role can help reduce feelings of isolation and loneliness and improve wellbeing.

We are flexible and accommodating to individual needs and commitments and will cover any travel expenses so you won’t be out of pocket.

I’m interested – how do I sign up?

We would love to hear from you!

If you would like to join our team then email us at volunteer@manchesterjewishmuseum.com or hit the button below. We look forward to hearing from you.

I would like to volunteer

CURRENT VOLUNTEER ROLES

MJM Schools workshop, image: Chris Payne
MJM Schools workshop, image: Chris Payne

Become a School Volunteer

Do you have experience of working in schools or creative environments with young people? Do you have an interest in helping shape creative and engaging workshops? Do you have a passion for history and telling stories?

We are looking for volunteers to help support our Creative Producer’s to deliver the museum’s school programme. Our new museum includes a brand-new learning studio and educational gallery as well as complete restoration of our synagogue, providing the perfect environment for schools wishing to learn more about Jewish culture.

We are currently offering schools two half day workshops from September: Synagogue & Sabbath and Festivals & Feasts. These workshops involve a variety of activities, from baking challah bread to discovery trials in the museum’s gallery. The school workshops celebrate and share the diversity of Jewish experiences and identities in the collection and give students a strong understanding of the synagogue space.

We are currently looking for volunteers to support our Creative Producers on the delivery of our school sessions. The sessions are very hands on and fast paced, and we encourage people to apply that have a background in working in schools or creative learning environments. Please don’t be put off if you don’t have experience working in museums, we think enthusiasm and a can-do attitude goes far, and we’d love to hear from you! There will be an opportunity to watch and shadow the sessions, as well as receive training on supporting workshops from our Programming team.

When would I need to volunteer?

• School workshops take place on weekdays, Monday – Friday.
• We would be interested in volunteers that could offer regular support to the school’s programme (commit to a minimum of twice a month) or be on hand to offer extra support in busy periods. Please contact us to discuss what form of commitment you’ll be able to offer.

MJM Cafe, image: Chris Payne
MJM Cafe, image: Chris Payne

Become a Cafe Volunteer

Are you a keen or aspiring cook? Do you enjoy working as part of a team? Are you eager to learn about Jewish food & culture?

We are looking for volunteer support in our award-winning café to work alongside our Café Team leaders. Open 7 days a week serving delicious Vegetarian & Vegan food, our small and simple menu takes inspiration from traditional Sephardi & Ashkenazi recipes which we adapt with a playful twist.

At times the café can be busy, so volunteers need to be able to work well under pressure. Although volunteers will always be working with a café team leader or a duty manager, volunteering in the café also includes some physical tasks which volunteers need to be confident & capable of completing.

General day to day tasks include: assisting with food preparation, taking customer orders, preparing drinks, processing payments through the till and general cleaning tasks.

This is a great opportunity to support the Museum and to get experience of working as part of a small & dynamic team.

Café volunteers will also get the opportunity to complete their Level 2 Food Hygiene & Safety certificate.

When would I need to volunteer?

We are currently looking for volunteer support for Mondays (10am-1pm or 11am-2pm).

Manchester Jewish Museum welcome desk, image: Chris Payne
Manchester Jewish Museum welcome desk, image: Chris Payne

Become a Welcome Desk Volunteer

Do you have experience with customer service? Would you like to help us offer quality experience to our visitors?

As a Welcome Desk Volunteer, you will serve as the first point of contact for visitors to the Museum, offering assistance with booking tickets, maintaining visitor records and completing shop sales. General tasks in this role include:

  • Assisting with the booking and reservation of general admission and special event ticket sales;
  • Completing shop sales;
  • Providing an introduction to the Museum, including the Gallery and Synagogue;
  • Assisting visitors with enquiries about the museum, evening events and other local attractions.

We’re looking for people with good interpersonal and verbal communication skills, who want to help us offer a warm welcome to everyone who walks through our doors.

When would I need to volunteer?

We are currently looking for volunteers who could cover the below shifts:

  • Monday 10am-1:30pm
  • Friday 1:30pm-5pm
  • Sunday 10am-1pm
  • Sunday 1pm-4pm
Our Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue, image: Joel Chester Fildes
Our Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue, image: Joel Chester Fildes

Become a Gallery & Synagogue Guide

Are you interested in exploring and sharing the history of Manchester’s Jewish communities? Would you like to gain experience in museum interpretation? Become one of the museum guides!

Our guides deliver a variety of interpretation on the museum gallery and synagogue. They guide visitors through their museum experience and enrich it by assisting visitors in enquires about the exhibition, collection and synagogue.

We’re looking for people with strong verbal communication skills, a passion for history and heritage and ability to work in a team.

All guides will receive induction training from the museum’s curator.

When would I need to volunteer?

We are currently mainly looking for guides to cover weekend shifts:

  • Saturday 10am-1:30pm
  • Saturday 1:30pm-5pm
  • Sunday 10am-1:30pm
  • Sunday 1:30pm-5pm
Identities gallery, image: Chris Payne
Identities gallery, image: Chris Payne

Become a Social Media Volunteer

Are you a content creator? Do you make videos on TikTok or manage an Instagram profile? Would you like to help us share hidden stories from the museum’s archive with the world? We’d love to hear from you!

We are looking for volunteers to help support our Marketing & Communications Manager in creating engaging content for the museum’s social media channels.

We are looking for young (18-25) and creative people, who use social media on a daily basis, understand trends on different platforms and can support us with video creation for Instagram and TikTok.

If you’re interested in story-telling and video editing, please get in touch! This is a great opportunity for students and people starting their career in creative industries, who would like to develop their digital content creation skills and build their portfolio with the support of the museum’s Marketing & Communications Manager.

Please don’t be put off if you don’t have experience working in museums, we think enthusiasm and a can-do attitude goes far, and we’d love to hear from you!

We would be interested in volunteers that could offer regular support to the museum’s Marketing Manager (commit to a minimum of 5 hours, fortnightly). Please contact us to discuss what form of commitment you’ll be able to offer as we might be able to accommodate.

You belong with us – Diversity and Inclusion

Are you interested in joining an inclusive and ambitious creative organisation? Do you want to help us bring people together to connect and share our stories?

We pride ourselves on being a welcoming and inclusive organisation, actively celebrating diversity and promoting acceptance and inclusivity. We value the benefits that diverse perspectives bring to our team and practise. We recognise we currently under-represent black people, people of colour, people with disabilities and those with intersecting identities in our team. We also seek to include self-identifying Jewish representation across our team. We are actively working to address this and encourage applicants from these identities and are committed to positive policies to promote equal opportunity in the development and growth of the museum industry.

While the successful candidate will be selected purely on merit, in the event of a tie between two candidates with equal experience, we may select a candidate who helps us better represent the communities the museum serves.

If you would like to join our team then email us at volunteer@manchesterjewishmuseum.com or hit the button below. We look forward to hearing from you.

I would like to volunteer

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