Volunteer Symposium for Regional and Community-Run Museums
28 & 29 July 2025
The Mint
10 Macquarie Street, Sydney
Museums & Galleries of NSW is excited to be partnering with Museums of History NSW to host the inaugural Volunteer Symposium for NSW Regional and Community-Run Museums, in July 2025.
The two-day symposium is intended for volunteers who work in small to medium-sized museums in regional NSW, as well as the workers who support them. The symposium will feature keynote sessions on strategies for volunteer-run museums, succession planning, First Nations engagement and school learning programs in museums.
There will be many breakout sessions specifically tailored to the volunteer museum sector, with some involving hands-on demonstrations. These will run concurrently across the two days. Presented by experts from MHNSW and M&GNSW, they include introductions to the State Archives Collection and the Caroline Simpson Library, as well as presentations on textile collections care, archival collections care, researching collections, collection documentation, significance assessment, AMaGA’s First Peoples: A Roadmap for Enhancing Indigenous Engagement in Museums and Galleries, creating simple labels, the use of AI at Museums of History NSW, marketing, engaging children in museums, storytelling, grants and funding, and tour guiding
Bookings essential
Volunteers $50 + booking fee
Salaried staff and consultants $120 + booking fee
Ticket includes lunch, morning and afternoon teas.
KEYNOTE SESSIONS
In the first two sessions, participants will go beyond discussions of recruitment and retention to explore strategies to build resilient and sustainable volunteer-run museums.
Volunteer strategies for small museums: from planning to fully engaging
Mark Creyton, Consultant – Volunteering and Leadership Development
This session will provide the opportunity for participants to consider the new landscape of volunteering and what are their museum’s unique rationale, ethos and model for involving and working with volunteers. We will explore strategies to better communicate the engagement message and to work with different volunteer motivations, from those seeking experience to episodic and project volunteers. We will also delve into how to create effective early involvement and how to build and strengthen connections.
- Creating the culture, ethos and space for volunteering
- Considering volunteer opportunities and meaningfully connecting with volunteers
- Engaging volunteers in the unique work and culture of the museum
Succession planning for small museums: from building belonging to preparing for leadership
Mark Creyton, Consultant – Volunteering and Leadership Development
This session will explore how to create sustainable volunteer programs. We will examine how to transition from volunteers ‘helping out’ to volunteers actively involved as an integral part of the work of the museum, and ways to meaningfully sustain volunteer motivations. We will look at practical forms of enabling and creating leadership opportunities for volunteers and discuss succession planning and evaluation.
• Building belonging
• Preparing for leadership and succession
• Continuing to evolve and improve
What teachers want from your museum
Dr Rebecca Kummerfeld, Learning Manager, Museums of History NSW
Discover ways to connect with teachers to encourage school groups to visit your museum. Consider the way your museum collection connects with the school curriculum, what teachers look for in a museum visit and simple ways to make your museum engaging and relevant for school groups.
AMaGA First Peoples: A Roadmap for Enhancing Indigenous Engagement in Museums and Galleries
Peter White, Head of First Nations Cultural Engagement, Museums of History NSW
We have a roadmap with strategic directions, and we know what the goal is. How does the Australian Museums and Galleries Association (AMaGA) roadmap work for small to medium museums?
BREAKOUT SESSIONS
You will be able to indicate your preferred breakout sessions on registration.
Participants can attend a maximum of 5 breakout sessions during the 2-day conference.
Please select 7 options on ticket checkout, and we will attempt to accommodate as many of your choices as possible. Due to scheduling constraints and session capacities, you may be assigned to other options.
An introduction to the Caroline Simpson Library
Dr Matthew Stephens, Research Librarian, Museums of History NSW
Join Matt and other experts to explore the Caroline Simpson Library’s unique collection of rare books, ephemera, archives and objects dating back to the late 18th century. Learn about the history of the home in NSW through items such as store catalogues, linoleum and wallpaper sample books, furnishing textiles, photographic collections and much more.
Textile collections care
Sarah-Jane Rennie, Coordinator Collections Care, Museums of History NSW
Learn about housing, labelling and handling textiles. This will be a hands-on demonstration using Museums of History NSW collection items.
Caring for archival collections
Lang Ngo, Senior Advisor Conservation, Museums of History NSW
This session will explore the care, housing and handling of archival collections. It will be a hands-on demonstration using Museums of History NSW collection items.
Collection documentation: from acquisition to deaccession
Alex Shapley, Registrar, Museums of History NSW
This presentation will cover documentation for acquisitions, loans and deaccessions, and will touch on assessing the condition of an object at acquisition and collection management policies.
Creating engaging onsite experiences for children at your museum
Naomi Manning, Senior Producer, Tamsin Birch, Producer, and Jo Chapman, Producer, Learning team, Museums of History NSW
This hands-on workshop will explore three different modes for engaging children in your museum: object-based learning, sensory activities and role-play.
Creating useful web resources for teachers and students
Edward Washington, Producer, Learning Team, Museums of History NSW
Discover how to develop online teaching resources, allowing teachers and students to use your collection in their classrooms.
Significance assessment
Anna Cossu, Curator, Museums of History NSW
This workshop will explore the fundamentals of significance assessment and how it can assist us in making decisions about our collections.
Researching your collection
Michael Lech, Curator, Museums of History NSW
An introduction to researching the history of items in your collection using the resources of the Caroline Simpson Library. A complete understanding of your collection will help you to produce new stories that attract more diverse audiences.
An introduction to the State Archives Collection
Bonnie Wildie, Lead Archivist, Museums of History NSW
Discover the types of records held in the State Archives Collection and how to search the collection online. This session will include a demonstration of online resources.
Storytelling
Kate Gahan, Storyplace Manager, Museums & Galleries of NSW
This workshop will provide tips and tricks for storytelling with museum objects.
Tour guiding essentials
Scott Cumming and David Key, Visitor Services Coordinators, Museums of History NSW
Join Visitor Services Coordinators as they talk through their experiences of welcoming visitors and delivering tours across a variety of museum contexts – from small houses to gardens, farms and exhibitions. The session will incorporate a practical demonstration of tour delivery, including Acknowledgement of Country, welcoming, engaging visitors and delivering a tour.
AI and Museums of History NSW
Tim Girling-Butcher, Head of Digital & Design, Museums of History NSW
Tim Girling-Butcher will provide an introduction to AI for beginners, discuss how he and his team use it in their daily work, and talk about upcoming projects and the changes that AI is expected to bring to Museums of History NSW over the next five years.
Marketing your museum
Karen Rivera, Head of Audience & Marketing, Museums of History NSW
Join members of Museums of History NSW’s Marketing team to explore how to effectively leverage your organisation’s marketing channels, including website, e-newsletters and social media, to drive audience awareness and engagement. Learn how Museums of History NSW undertakes audience evaluation, the pros and cons of different data collection methodologies, and existing third-party audience data sources.
Creating simple object labels
Anne-Louise Falson, Exhibition Graphic Designer, and Rhiain Hull, Project Manager – Written Content, Museums of History NSW
Learn how to produce a basic object label. This session will cover the hierarchy of text elements, font size and other design requirements, and will include a label-making demonstration.
Exploring First Nations engagement
Peter White, Head of First Nations Cultural Engagement, Museums of History NSW
This session will offer a deep dive into how to apply the key principles outlined in AMaGA’s roadmap in your work.
Grants and funding
Emily Cullen, Sector Development Manager, and Alice Norwood, Museum Coordinator, Museums & Galleries of NSW
Learn how to find funding, write applications and understand what assessors are looking for.
Photo © Joshua Morris for MHNSW
For further information, contact
Dale Maxwell-Smith, Training & Engagement Manager
Email: dalem@mgnsw.org.au
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Mark Creyton
Mark Creyton has extensive experience in developing and enhancing volunteer programs in a variety of sectors, including the cultural sector, and has taken an active role in national research projects for Volunteering Australia and the new National Standards for Volunteer Involvement. He was education and research director for Volunteering Queensland for many years and has worked with more than 15,000 community groups and initiatives.
Mark provides a range of masterclass programs in leading volunteer programs and consulting in this field. He has a passion for grassroots leadership and all volunteer groups and works with communities to build capacity for local programs and initiatives.
Dr Rebecca Kummerfeld
Dr Rebecca Kummerfeld is Learning Manager at Museums of History NSW and an adjunct at Deakin University. She has more than a decade’s experience managing learning teams at the Sydney Jewish Museum and the North Lincolnshire Museum service (UK), and is a published author and a regular presenter at conferences. With a background in teaching, research and management, she creates engaging and memorable museum experiences for a wide range of audiences. Rebecca works strategically at the intersection of history and education, developing projects that promote critical thinking and empathetic understanding. A skilled storyteller, she crafts narratives that connect audiences meaningfully with historical events and perspectives.
Peter White
Peter White, a proud Gamilaroi Murri, has more than 30 years’ experience in the creative and cultural heritage sector, and leads First Nations cultural engagement and strategy at Museums of History NSW. His mission is to ensure tangible and mutually beneficial outcomes for the protection and strengthening of cultural practices and mainstream sector engagement, through championing the cultural rights of First Peoples communities.
Peter excels in formulating and delivering culturally appropriate strategic approaches and program development, and fosters extensive networks across the arts, community, public, private and education sectors. He is a recognised transformational and strategic leader within the First Nations cultural sector.