North East Museums


Volunteer steward at The Late Shows, a cultural festival taking place over two nights each May.Welcome to North East Museums Volunteering

North East Museums (formerly Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums) manages 12 museums and galleries and an Archive across the North East.

The venues are:

  • Arbeia, South Shields Roman Fort (South Shields)  
  • Discovery Museum (Newcastle upon Tyne)
  • Great North Museum: Hancock (Newcastle upon Tyne)
  • Hatton Gallery (Newcastle upon Tyne)
  • Hexham Old Gaol
  • Laing Art Gallery (Newcastle upon Tyne)
  • Morpeth Chantry Bagpipe Museum
  • Segedunum Roman Fort (Wallsend)
  • Shipley Art Gallery (Gateshead)
  • South Shields Museum & Art Gallery (South Shields)
  • Stephenson Steam Railway (North Shields)
  • Tyne & Wear Archives (based in Discovery Museum)
  • Woodhorn Museum

One of our most important aims is to make a positive difference in people’s lives through the exhibitions, programmes and services we deliver.

This is where you come in.

Volunteers are essential to the work that we do. You can help to ensure that all of our museums and galleries are innovative, imaginative, creative, totally inclusive, secure and sustainable.

In turn, we hope volunteering will help you to develop new skills and interests, meet friendly, like-minded people, gain confidence and a sense of well-being, and even strengthen your CV, or curriculum vitae.

We want all our volunteers to have an enjoyable and rewarding time and to feel part of the team that delivers a world class museums service to the communities of the North East and beyond.

 

So why not come and join us?

 

How it works

 

Use this space to find out about new opportunities to volunteer and make a positive contribution to our museums and galleries.  


When volunteer application forms are accepted, you are invited to attend an induction. Once you have attended an induction you are accepted into the volunteering pool, and can sign up to available roles that interest you. 


New opportunities will be added regularly, making it easier for you to get involved, whether you have 10 minutes to spare or want to volunteer on a weekly basis.
 
 
Recruitment for the below roles is now open.

 

Applications will close  4th August 2025, and reopen on Monday 1st September 2025.

 

 

I would like to volunteer

Fill in an application

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Get Social

Arbeia, South Shields Roman Fort

westgate colin Davison

Volunteer opportunities at Arbeia Roman Fort

Activity Shifts Start End
Archaeology Assistant 1

Great North Museum: Hancock

Great North Museum: Hancock drawing

Roles available at Great North Museum: Hancock

Activity Shifts Start End
Summer Family Activities Support 65 7/19/2025 8/31/2025

North East Museums

This category is for volunteer opportunities that are not venue specific but are core to the entire organisation.

Activity Shifts Start End
16/07/2025 - New Volunteer Induction - Online Via Teams 1 7/16/2025 7/16/2025
19/06/2025 - New Volunteer Induction - In person at Discovery Museum 1 6/19/2025 6/19/2025
22/05/2025 - New Volunteer Induction - Online via Teams 1 5/22/2025 5/22/2025
Access to Volunteering group 1

Shipley Art Gallery

Activity Shifts Start End
Family Arts Festival assistant 9 5/27/2025 8/28/2025
Informal Language Skills Volunteer 1

Stephenson Steam Railway

Volunteer roles at Stephenson Steam Railway 

Volunteers are needed to help maintain and operate our heritage railway, the North Tyneside Steam Railway, which runs passenger trains on selected days from Easter until early November.

Activity Shifts Start End
Carriage and Wagon Volunteer 1
Stephenson Railway Youth Group 1
Train Operations 1
Waggonway Tea Room - Tea Room Assistants 1
Woodland Walk Gardening and Design 1

Our mission

Our mission is to welcome and connect people to the past, present and future of the North East through stories, shared spaces and experiences.

 

We will help people understand and act on local and global challenges: 

  • Equality – we will provide a warm welcome to everyone, break down barriers caused by inequality and discrimination and share diverse stories.  
  • Wellbeing – we will use our spaces and services to support people’s physical and mental health.  
  • Social mobility – we will deliver learning experiences, volunteering opportunities and pathways for personal development for people of all ages and backgrounds.  
  • Climate – we will raise awareness about the environment and encourage people to act for a sustainable future.  
  • Place – we will celebrate North East England, inspire local pride and use our resources to support research, innovation and economic regeneration.