The British Museum and the Marsh Christian Trust Announce Winners Of The 2018 Marsh Volunteer Awards

The British Museum and the Marsh Christian Trust have been working in partnership for the eleventh year for the 'Volunteers for Museum Learning' award which recognises the hugely valuable contribution that volunteers make in helping museums engage with their visitors.

The 'Volunteers for Museum Learning' award forms part of a programme of awards presented by the Marsh Christian Trust in the fields of science, ecology, conservation, heritage, literature and volunteering. Each one of these awards recognises individuals and organisations who devote their lives to improving the world today and the world in the future. The Marsh awards programme is managed in association with key partners including the Zoological Society of London, English Heritage, Barnardo's, the Refugee Council and the British Museum.

The aim of the 'Volunteers for Museum Learning' award is to recognise those volunteers who work directly with museum visitors in any capacity. This could involve leading a school group, staffing an information desk, helping with family activities, running a guided tour or any number of other ways in which volunteers provide such excellent service to museum visitors.

There were a large number of applications from across the UK, some from groups of volunteers and some from individuals. The judges consisted of staff from the Marsh Trust, staff and volunteers from the British Museum and a representative from English Heritage. The British Museum is delighted to host the awards, being very aware of the crucial contribution volunteers make to the well-being of the Museum and its enjoyment by the public.

Due to the British Museum's involvement in the ceremony and judging, volunteers from the British Museum were ineligible for the awards.

Sir Richard Lambert, Chairman of the Trustees at the British Museum said "Museums across the UK rely on the contribution of volunteers to ensure they reach and inspire as many people as possible. The Marsh Awards recognise the commitment and enthusiasm of volunteers in museums and we are very grateful to the Marsh Christian Trust for acknowledging this work.

The winners will each receive a cash prize of £500, donated by the Marsh Christian Trust. The one overall national winner who receives an additional £2,000.

The list of winners for Volunteers for Museum Learning is:

Scotland

The Volunteers Team at Shetland Textile Museum, Shetland.

North East

Jamie Sample at Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (MIMA), Middlesbrough.

North West

The Volunteer Millers & Guides, Nether Alderley Mill, Cheshire.

Yorkshire

The 'Blot on the Landscape' Volunteers, Temple Newsham House, Leeds.

East Midlands

The Project Digby Volunteers, 1620s House & Gardens, Donington le Heath, Leicestershire.

West Midlands

Schools and Family Activities Volunteers, Dudley Canal and Tunnel Trust, Dudley

Wales

The Plas Mawr Elizabethan House Volunteer Team, Conwy.

East England (Joint Winners)

Jo Foster-Murdoch at Norfolk Heritage Centre, Norwich.

Zowie Sweetland at the Whipple Museum of the History of Science, Cambridge.

South West

The Clifton Suspension Bridge Volunteer Vault Tour Team, Bristol.

South East

Lisa Mundy at Pallant House Gallery, Chichester.

London (Joint Winners)

The Volunteer Research Group at Strawberry Hill House, Twickenham.

The Kindertransport Talk Volunteers, Jewish Museum, Camden.

Northern Ireland

The Treasure House Volunteer Team at National Museums Northern Ireland, Ulster Museum.

National Winners

The 'Blot on the Landscape' Volunteers, Temple Newsham House, Leeds.

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