Training Courses

These training courses are aimed at museum professionals. Please contact us at 02 6280 6280 or email us at enquiries@endangeredheritage.com for more information regarding the courses.

Volunteers: Managing your most valuable resource

Many community organisations are reliant on volunteer help. Museums, galleries, and tourism locales serve the community, and volunteers are the keystones to our ability to deliver. But with the ‘stay at home’ mantra and the inability to open to the community, some volunteers may not feel needed or invited back.

This workshop runs all day and will cover the issues around attracting, finding, and supporting volunteers. We will cover liabilities, the way to get the most from your volunteers, and how to deal with the ones that are not working for you, but against you.

Some organisations may be in a situation where key volunteers take the corporate memory with them. We will discuss how to prevent this and what steps to take to build corporate strength as well as other topics such as: The new directions and important tasks you’d want to prioritise and resume. How to make sure this re-entry time for the volunteers and public engagement remains compliant but still welcoming and productive?

This talk will cover all the aspects concerning volunteer management for small museums and community organisations.

WH&S in Museums and Collections

As things in our world get safer and our concern for safety increases, we can see more and more things become obsolete. Objects may become obsolete because of dangerous substances like asbestos, lead white, battery acid, or acidic plasticiser. So, we replace these objects with something safer, and better designed and better functioning. But what happens to these old objects? Well, they are now museum items.

Mechanical, chemical, and biological risks appear everywhere in our collections. Hazards are quite literally around every corner. Managing staff, public displays, and volunteers in our storerooms is a logistic and work-safety maze.

This workshop runs for 2 full days and covers the science behind the collections. Learn what the risks are and how to manage them.

Care and Handling of Textiles

Textiles are the most fragile items in any collection, and their care is essential as treatment and recovery are very expensive. This is a full-day workshop that covers the technical issues and the need for support, boxing, and the correct pH for the long-term care of textiles.

This hands-on workshop covers surface cleaning, documentation, and handling issues. Learn how to properly box and care for fragile flat textiles and garments. The workshop will also cover three-dimensional textiles shoes, umbrellas, fans, and other tricky items.

Victoria, our director, is a part of the Australian ICOMOS, a fabric conservation reference group.

Disaster Preparedness for Small Museums and Collections

Disaster can strike at any time, with the most prominent examples being fires, floods, or mould. However, another often not considered risk is that of insect infestations.

Having the correct processes in place, make the planning of these risks possible and your responses more effective. This workshop will actively help you design a disaster management plan for your organisation.

Victoria has worked at an international level in disaster preparedness and in planning for risk prevention in built environmental and movable heritage. Victoria is also part of the International committee ICORP (International committee for risk preparedness).