City Archivist

September 11, 2024

Bristol City Council

Bristol

OTHER & FULL TIME

Permanent, Full time

Bristol Archives are recruiting for a City Archivist to lead and develop our service in line with recognised Accreditation and statutory standards.

We are seeking a proactive, dynamic and visionary individual to lead, manage and develop our outstanding archive collections and dedicated team of six archivists, four searchroom staff and additional project staff.

Bristol is a vibrant City with a lively cultural offer, noted for its creativity and quality of life. Bristol Archives is an Accredited Archive Service, and part of Bristol Culture. We care for records Designated as an Outstanding Collection which span ten centuries of the City’s history, as well as archives in the British Empire & Commonwealth Collection.

You will make sure that the service is meeting its statutory requirements and Accreditation standards. You will develop policies and strategies which respond to the requirements of users and all collections (both physical and digital) and will take forward developments in our public services and digital preservation.

Vision and collaboration are key to this post, working with the multi-disciplinary Bristol Culture team, as well as partners within and beyond the public sector, to engage with diverse communities and lead new work on the collections. You will lead projects, including the NLHF-funded regional Sounds of the South West, and will raise the profile of Bristol Archives locally and nationally.

You will hold a postgraduate qualification in archive administration (or equivalent) and significant experience in a public-facing archive environment. Experience of managing a team is essential.

Why Bristol City Council?

At Bristol City Council, we go that extra mile for our people; we offer a work environment which is fast moving and supportive, giving you the chance to use your skills and develop new ones within a high-profile organisation. For the majority of our roles hybrid working arrangements are available, giving teams the opportunity to work in a way that suits them, balancing service need and individual choice – mixing both home and office working.

Join us and you will receive a generous rewards package including flexible working and flexi-time, membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme, and a generous annual leave allowance. In addition you will be working in a supportive environment where you will have the chance to make Bristol a better place and contribute to its future.

How do I apply?

If you share our values and are ready to be part of our exciting journey please select the apply button below.

To be shortlisted for interview you’ll need to demonstrate how you meet each of the essential criteria in the Person Specification within the Further Information section of your application. On occasion we will receive high numbers of applications, we may then shortlist against the desirable criteria along with the essential criteria, so if you can, please demonstrate how you meet this in your application.

All full-time posts can be considered for job share.

For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Linda Coode Head of Collections and Archives on linda.coode@bristol.gov.uk.

At Bristol City Council, we value having a workforce as diverse as the City we serve. We therefore welcome, develop and promote people from all sections of the community. Appointments will be made on merit.

We regret to inform you that this job opportunity is no longer available