Visitor Services Assistant

Summary

The contract is part time and permanent, and the pro-rata annual salary is £26,208, adjusted for hours worked. Your working time will be 15.00 hours each week. The employer, National Trust for Scotland, is a self governing Royal Charter Company. You will be based at Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, which is an historic building or structure where the fabric and story of the building is the focus. It is located in South Ayrshire.

Closing date 31-01-2026

Job Description

KEY PURPOSE

To maximise our visitors’ enjoyment of National Trust for Scotland managed sites by maintaining excellent standards of service, optimising opportunities to generate income and ensuring that the site and its assets are safe and secure.

Specifically, to ensure the smooth and safe operations in Admissions, Tours, Retail, Catering and Events activities making the property the best possible place to visit and work.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACCOUNTABILITIES

To provide a consistently high standard of visitor care at all times

Welcoming visitors to the site and processing their admission/retail or catering purchase in a friendly, efficient and knowledgeable manner.

Welcoming visitors with special needs / impairments and providing a high level of service in accordance with the Disability Discrimination Act.

Welcoming International visitors and aiding with specific needs.

Welcoming groups in an efficient and warm manner

Answering visitors’ queries about the site, education facilities and the local area.

Providing information about the site, its history, contents, offers and merchandise.

Promoting National Trust for Scotland brand to include our Membership scheme, events, upselling other properties and any promotional campaigns, being proactive in the selling of Membership and Gift Aid.

Occasional guiding duties: booked group visits or Museum/ Cottage highlight tours for general visitors.

To maintain excellent standards of site and personal presentation at all times

The general ongoing operational cleaning of all areas as necessary, toilet cleaning, emptying waste bins and as appropriate vacuum cleaning, mopping, sweeping, dusting, and polishing when required.

Ensuring site is ready to open and

Welcome visitors by the set opening time.

Wearing correct uniform, name badges, or PPE as required.

Reporting all issues of damage and wear and tear, promptly to your Line Manager

Working in harmony with other departments; housekeeping, gardening, grounds maintenance and site repair employees/contractors.

Financial Responsibilities

To adhere to all financial procedures to include till operation and banking and safeguarding of monies.

Retail/Catering/Events/Cashier duties

To ensure good housekeeping of catering kitchens, serveries, back and front of house areas and including dishwashing

To ensure that retail merchandising is in accordance with NTS policy.

To assist in achieving site retail/catering/events targets and KPI’s.

To actively upsell products and services to facilitate the visitor’s enjoyment.

To actively feedback visitor comments to line managers to develop and improve offer, service, operations.

To work flexibly across departments and sites as needed.

To assist with the set-up, stewarding and break-down of events in liaison with the functions and events manager.

To assist with hospitality events. This includes evening events and staff may be asked to work through into the night hours.

Health and Safety

To ensure site meets with Health and Safety legislation in liaison with your department manager.

To ensure that visitors vacate the site at close of business and that the site is secured at end of day.

To use personal protection equipment as provided and directed by your line manager.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS, EXPERIENCE & KNOWLEDGE

Qualifications

No formal educational qualification required.

Skills, Experience & Knowledge

Essential

Demonstrable experience in a customer-facing role: sales or ticketing/ event/ admissions and/or retail and/or catering, delivering impeccable customer care through excellent inter-personal skills and food safety standards (where applicable)

Experience in EPOS style till operation, confidence undertaking till-work and reconciliation.

Excellent cash handling skills.

Excellent “front of house” persona – warm, welcoming, patient, understanding.

Excellent selling skills – adaptable to customer type and product.

Demonstrable excellent time management skills and the ability to prioritise.

Flexible, helpful outlook to customers and colleagues.

An understanding and commitment to the aims and objectives of the National Trust for Scotland.

Living the values of the National Trust for Scotland and encourage colleagues to do the same.

The ability and willingness to understand others’ perspectives and to consider the impact of your actions on them and to adapt your actions as necessary.

The ability and willingness to learn and try new things, to be flexible and step outside of your comfort zone.

An open and honest way of communicating, ready to ask others for their ideas and to be open to hear and consider different points of view.

A pro-active approach to taking initiative and to driving forward ideas and projects designed to improve daily operations and deliver an exceptional visitor experience.

Desirable

Ideally experience in a heritage/tourism environment.

Food hygiene certificate.

Basic cooking skills and willingness to be trained.

Personal Licence for sale of alcohol

Experience in storytelling and a passion for Scottish heritage and history.

Ability to work additional hours to suit business needs.

A full UK driving licence

Access to your own transport

DIMENSIONS AND SCOPE OF JOB

Scale

The role is based in the main museum building and at Robert Burns Birthplace cottage.

The role works across several departments: retail, catering and admissions and assisting with events and functions when required.

The role is customer facing and the role-holder can expect that the working day will mainly be spent front of house, providing customer service to our visitors.

There may be times when you are required to work at other NTS properties such as but not exclusively Souter Johnnies Cottage and the Batchelor’s Club

The role requires the post holder to work flexible working patterns and hours including evenings, weekends, and public holidays.

People Management

This is not a line management role.

Will work closely with other property colleagues and will have regular interaction with other technical/specialist advisory colleagues based in other locations and departments.

Will have regular (daily) interaction with members of the public of all ages and abilities.

Finance Management

Is not a budget holder.

Responsibility for ensuring customer payment is processed correctly, handling cash and card information.

Tools/ equipment/ systems

Will regularly use a wide range of ICT equipment including land-line phone, two-way radio, email, scanner, laptop/PC, printer etc.

Will use catering equipment including coffee machines, dishwashers, and some cooking equipment.

Key performance indicators and targets

Catering and retail sales targets met or exceeded with margins achieved.

Membership targets are met.

Visitor surveys are promoted, email addresses gathered, and responses recorded.

Systems of recording all up to date: including allergens, COSSH, cleaning records, stock take and wastage.

Visit Scotland 5-star grading maintained, and Visitor feedback survey scores.

Organisational Chart

The Purpose, Context, Key Responsibilities, and Person Specification reflect the requirements of the job at the time of issue. The Trust reserves the right to amend these with appropriate consultation and/or request the post-holder to undertake any activities that it believes to be reasonable within the broad scope of the job or his/her general abilities.

How to Apply

Interested applicants should forward their Curriculum Vitae (CV) or an Application Form to the People Services Department (Applications) by email via workforus@nts.org.uk.

Please ensure your CV includes your full name and contact details, the CV file sent to us should be titled your first initial and surname. When submitting your CV please state the position and job location of the vacancy you are applying for in the subject title or body of your email: For example, "VSA – RBBM"

Disclaimer
Every effort has made to reproduce the original job advert faithfully, but errors may occur. At any time job vacancies may be withdrawn or closed prior to the original date advertised. For the definitive description, requirements, and for application instructions please see the original advert; you will be redirected to another website.