Cultural Venue Operations Modern Apprentice - Stirling Castle

Job purpose: Stirling Castle is one of the most popular paid visitor attractions in Scotland. The Operations team work to provide all aspects of the visitor journey within the castle and is responsible for delivering a world-class visitor experience. This includes a diverse range of activities and modern apprentices are required in three areas within the castle.

As a Modern Apprentice, you will spend a month in the guiding team, getting to know the history of the castle, you will then work within each team for three months on a rotational basis. Following this, you will be placed in one area where you will stay for the remainder of your time with Historic Environment Scotland (unless stated otherwise). There will also be opportunity to work within our Events team.

During your work experience, you will also complete coursework, working towards the qualification towards the Diploma in Cultural Venue Operations, SCQF Level 6.

This will be completed in conjunction with Museum Galleries Scotland you will be supported by an assessor, who will meet you on a regular basis and assist in your progress. Once your coursework is completed and you have gained your qualification, you will be able to continue to gain valuable work experience within the castle until your fixed term contract ends.

What will I learn? This placement offers the opportunity to develop a broad range of transferable skills by working across the Guiding, Retail and Admissions teams at Stirling Castle. You will build strong communication and customer service skills through daily interaction with visitors from a variety of backgrounds, learning how to provide a warm welcome, answer questions confidently and create memorable visitor experiences.

You will gain valuable knowledge of Scotland’s heritage and history, developing the ability to share information in an engaging and accessible way. The role will also help you develop confidence in public speaking, teamwork, problem-solving and working in a busy public-facing environment.

Through your work in Retail and Admissions, you will learn practical commercial skills, including sales techniques, cash handling, ticketing processes, stock management, visual merchandising and the use of electronic point-of-sale systems. You will also develop an understanding of how visitor attractions operate successfully while delivering excellent customer service.

In addition, you will gain experience in site operations and visitor management, including supporting accessibility, maintaining safety and security, managing visitor and vehicle access, and following operational procedures. These experiences will help you build responsibility, attention to detail and confidence in working independently and as part of a team.

Overall, the placement provides a well-rounded introduction to customer service, heritage and tourism, retail operations, sales, and visitor attraction management, equipping you with valuable skills that can be applied across a wide range of future careers.

What qualifications or qualities are required? Applications are welcomed from all, however due to our commitment to providing skills development opportunities to young people to enter the Heritage workforce, we actively encourage applications from school leavers. Due to apprenticeship eligibility, we are unable to consider those who have a degree in this area.

You will be required to demonstrate that you meet the requirements and qualifications below as part of the selection process.

Essential requirements:

• Excellent communication skills

• Desire to work in a fast-paced visitor environment

• Experience of working as part of a team to achieve a common goal

• A passion for working in a busy Retail environment

• An interest in Scottish History

Desirable requirements:

• Ability to speak multiple languages

• Knowledge of the visitor attractions sector

• A knowledge of stock ordering systems

• Previous experience of working with till systems