Salary: £32,000 per annum
Location: St Pancras
Job Type: Fixed Term Contract
Vacancy Group: Collections
Category: Collection Care, Curation & Conservation
Closing Date: 24/05/2021
Date Posted: 04/05/2021
Reference: 03632
As one of the world’s great libraries, our duty is to preserve the nation’s intellectual memory for the future and make it available to all for research, inspiration and enjoyment. At present we have well over 170 million items, in most known languages, with three million new items added every year. We have manuscripts, maps, newspapers, magazines, prints and drawings, music scores, and patents. Wemake our collections and programmes available to all. We operate the world’s largest document delivery service providing millions of items a year to customers all over the world. What matters to us is that we preserve the national memory and enable knowledge to be created both now and in the future by anyone, anywhere.
We are recruiting a Curator to develop, manage and promote the Library’s collections relating to Africa south of the Sahara. The post holder will acquire and catalogue publications from across Africa south of the Sahara, as well as engaging with collections in a number of formats and working collaboratively across the BL. They will promote and interpret the African collections to a wide variety of audiences through research, public engagement, cultural events and exhibitions, as well enabling access to the collections through our ongoing digitisation programmes and other digital initiatives.
The successful candidate will have a first degree (or degree level qualification) in a discipline relevant to the African collections, a strong interest in the history and cultures of Africa, and a good working knowledge of at least one of Hausa, Igbo, Somali, KiSwahili, Yorùbá, IsiXhosa, IsiZulu or another Bantu language. They will have experience in a library, archives or museum setting, a meticulous approach and strong attention to detail, and excellent communication and organisational skills.
In return we offer a competitive salary and a number of excellent benefits. Our pension scheme is one of the most valuable benefits we offer, as our staff can become members of the Alpha Pension Scheme where the Library contributes a minimum of 26.6%. Another significant benefit the Library provides is the provision of a flexible working hours scheme which could allow you to work your hours flexibly over the week and to take up to 5 days flexi leave in a 3 month period. This is on top of 25 days holiday from entry and public and privilege holidays.
For further information and to apply, please visit www.bl.uk/careers quoting vacancy ref: 03632
Closing date: 24/05/2021
