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Category: General News

  • Volunteero – New app for volunteers

    Volunteero – New app for volunteers

    We recently implemented a new volunteer system called Volunteero to ensure we provide our volunteers with the best possible experience.
    Volunteero replaces Better Impact, which was deactivated on Thursday 31 October.
    Why are we doing this?
    • Save manager time – This platform will make manager tasks easier to complete, enabling them to deliver more impact out on-site.
    • Streamline your experience – You will be able to manage your volunteering.
    • Improve engagement – Easily keep in touch with your manager and fellow volunteers, see upcoming sessions, and other opportunities you may be able to sign up to.
    How to access Volunteero?
    For volunteers: You will have received an email from Volunteero (“[email protected]”) containing your login details and links to download the app. You can sign in either via a web browser or through the mobile app “Volunteero”. We have created this short how-to guide to help you.
    For managers: Please use the SSO link via the Intranet’s Apps/Helpdesk tab above.
    What can I do on volunteero?
    For Volunteers:
    • Check your profile – When you log in, go to the “Profile” section, then tap “Account”, and tap “Edit Profile” to check that your details are correct. If not, feel free to update them and tap “Submit” at the bottom of the page to save your changes.
    • Attend training – The first training sessions for volunteers are taking place the week commencing 4 November, and this will be continued. All volunteers are invited to sign up in here.
    • Claim shifts –  Browse the available opportunities and fill up your volunteer schedule.
    • Chat with managers and fellow volunteers – In the app, go to the “Chats” section and drop a simple ‘Hello!’  in our social chat to get started!
    For Managers: 
    • Create shifts and manage rotas.
    • Easily communicate with your volunteers.
    • Monitor training completion and expiry dates.
    • Track volunteer recruitment.
    GDPR
    Volunteero complies with the Museum and industry standards with regards to security and data protection. Personal data will not be shared with any third parties.
    I still have questions
    Guides will be created over the coming weeks for both volunteers and managers/supervisors. In the meantime, please contact Ricki Boden, Volunteer Coordinator, at [email protected] if you have questions.
  • Training opportunities this Autumn

    Training opportunities this Autumn

    We are pleased to offer a series of training sessions this autumn to support colleagues in delivering inclusive and engaging experiences. Below are the upcoming opportunities:

    • Deaf awareness training: Suitable for all front-facing colleagues (please, attend only one session).

    When: Monday 11 November.

    Duration: 1.5 hours.

    Training times: 9.30am – 11am, or 11.30pm – 1.00pm, or 3pm – 4.30pm.

    Location: Hall 2.

    To sign up for the deaf awareness training, please put your name on this sheet,  alternatively, contact the Community Engagement team at [email protected].
    Capacity for 30-40 people each session.
    • Reminiscence Training: Historic characters who want to deliver reminiscence sessions.

    Limited spaces: 12 places – to attend an informal interview for selection will be required.

    Date: Monday 9 December.

    Duration: 10am-4pm.

    Location: Western Classroom 2.

    To sign up to the reminisce training, please email [email protected].

  • Festive colleague discount in the Museum shop

    Festive colleague discount in the Museum shop

    We’re pleased to announce a festive colleague discount in the Museum Shop, starting Friday 29 November, and running daily through Tuesday 24 December. Colleagues can enjoy a 25% discount on most items, with the exception of alcohol and canal art.

    Please note, the Black Country Bugle Annual is also excluded, as all proceeds from this item go to charity.

    Happy shopping, and we hope this adds some festive cheer to your holiday season!

  • Peaky Blinders – colleague evaluation survey

    Peaky Blinders – colleague evaluation survey

    Thank you to everyone who participated in our Peaky Blinders Night in September – we had some really brilliant feedback and now we need yours!

    Please take a few minutes to fill in our colleague survey to tell us what you think by Monday 18 November.

    Here are some highlights of what our visitors thought:

    “The peaky blinders event was epic. I enjoyed every minute of it and met a lot of people who made the event even better. The live bands, the live shows which I thought was real – made it even more exciting like the bank robbery and the murder at the canal”

    • 85% of visitors rated their overall experience of the programme as “good” or “excellent”.
    • 80% of visitors used their event map and it scored a brilliant 92%!
    • Visitors repeatedly mentioned enjoying the atmosphere, entertainment, street theatre, and dressing.
    • Visitors mentioned crowds, queues and slow entry as areas to improve their experience.

    Well done to all teams and please do complete the survey. For any specific questions on the programme or feedback, please email [email protected].

  • Winter opening hours and changes to online booking

    Winter opening hours and changes to online booking

    From Monday 4 November we’ll be moving to our winter opening hours. We’ll be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, and will be open from Wednesday – Sunday, 10am – 4pm.

    From Wednesday 6 November, we’re removing the need to book a timeslot – visitors now only need to book their preferred date, and only when purchasing a new ticket.

    BCLM Members, valid UnChained Annual Pass holders, or visitors using a discount or vouchers (for example Tesco Clubcard vouchers), will simply need to bring their card, pass or vouchers to be scanned or redeemed at the till. Should visitors have any questions, please do refer them to the FAQs on our website.

  • We want your greenery!

    We want your greenery!

    Do you have rampant ivy or holly that needs pruning?  Do you have excess fir tree cuttings?  Or do you have other evergreen materials you can spare? To support our Christmas decoration making workshops on Monday 4 November and Tuesday 5 November, we need masses of lovely fresh seasonal greenery. If you have a garden, an allotment or access to any lush Christmassy greenery, we’re kindly asking that you snip it for us! 

    We’d love you to bring in whatever you have from Friday 1 November to Monday 4 November. If you have an allotment, it might be worth putting the call out to other plot holders – as we can never have too much!

    There will be buckets for you to pop the stems in to keep them nice and fresh at the compound at the top of site. The fresher the better so if you can leave it as late as possible to cut them and put it in water straight after cutting, we can make sure our wreaths, garlands and table decorations are as fresh and perky as possible for the festive season.

    The longest lasting and most festive of the greenery is beech, oak, rose hips, pine, old man’s beard, spruce, conifer, holly, ivy, fir, magnolia, hops and rosemary. We also welcome any pine cones or other festive finds. What a good excuse for a ramble in the woods!

    During the festive period, once buildings are decorated, if you are working in historic buildings and you are looking for greenery to refresh your building, please contact the Collections team. If you have any questions about decorating the buildings for Christmas, please speak to the Collections team or email [email protected].

  • Travel: Birmingham New Road closure

    Travel: Birmingham New Road closure

    Travel update: Birmingham New Road

    Please note that Birmingham New Road, Dudley will be closed from Monday 28 October to Saturday 2 November between 8pm and 5am each night for carriageway resurfacing works. This may affect colleagues on your journeys, in particular when leaving following our evening events.

    The closure will be in place from the junction of Sedgley Road West to the junction of Sangwin Road.

    Traffic will be diverted via Sedgley Road West, Hurst Lane, Bloomfield Road, High Street, Wednesbury Oak Road, Bilston Road, Great Bridge Road, Oxford Street, Black Country Route, Birmingham New Road, and vice versa.

     

  • Our awards success

    Our awards success

    We’re delighted to share that the Museum has won or is a finalist for several awards.

    At the inaugural West Midlands Supported Internships Event, held last week at Shoosmiths in Birmingham, we won an award for our work in supporting autistic people into the workplace and the training that colleagues have received to engage with and support autistic people. Thank you to Halesowen College for the nomination and to our colleagues who have led on this important work.

    In November, the award ceremonies for the Black Country Chamber of Commerce Awards and School Travel Awards are being held. We’re finalists for Employer of the Year and Best Museum Visit & Best Education Workshops respectively.

    Finally, we’re a finalist in the West Midlands Tourism Awards 2025 for Best Large Attraction. The awards ceremony will take place in March and, if we’re successful, we will represent the region at the national VisitEngland awards.

    Recognition of the Museum, as a finalist or a winner, is a testament to the hard work, passion and commitment of our colleagues. Thank you!

  • Punjab tales come to the Museum

    Punjab tales come to the Museum

    On Monday 21 October, the Museum hosted one of the first consultation storytelling workshops.

    It was a pleasure to meet the Saanjha Punjab Women’s group based in Willenhall. Working with 25 ladies, we explored stories about migration, motherhood, and everyday experiences of South Asian women moving to the Black County in the 1960s. We discussed at length anecdotal, stories about cultural differences and similarities about life in the Punjab and life in the UK.

    As part of our inclusive storytelling journey, we plan to connect with more communities including, Bangladeshi, Irish, LGBTQ, and disabled groups across the Black Country.

    The Museum is ideally placed to connect and engage with the global majority of communities to record and collect stories from the missing narrative. We proudly work towards inclusive representation within the storybook of Black Country heritage.

  • Christmas 2024 pay arrangements

    Christmas 2024 pay arrangements

    Below are the details regarding pay arrangements for the end of 2024 and the beginning of 2025:

    • The December 2024 pay date will be on Friday 20 December 2024.
    • For hourly paid staff this will cover the four weeks from Monday 25 November to Sunday 22 December.
    • January 2025 pay will be paid on Friday 24 January 2025 (one week before the last Friday in the month).
    • For hourly pay staff this will cover the four weeks from Monday 23 December 2024 to Sunday 19 January 2025.
    • February 2025 pay date will be Friday 28 February 2025 and there will be five weeks between the January and February pay dates.

    We’d like to remind colleagues that the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) and Perkbox are available to help ease any financial pressure during this time.