Archives Assistant Apprentice

Royal Opera House

LONDON (WC2E 9DD)

Closes on Monday 20 April 2026

Posted on 10 March 2026

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Summary

The Archives Assistant Apprenticeship is an opportunity to join the team who manage the RBO Collections and develop many of the skills needed to collect, care for and document archives and historic objects, and help users access and engage with the RBO’s collections and history.

Wage

£15,704 to £25,396.80, depending on your age

National Minimum Wage

Check minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)

Training course
Library, information and archive services assistant (level 3)
Hours
The working week is 40 hours, which will largely be scheduled between 10.00am and 6.00pm. However, there will also be out of hours, evening and weekend work within this role.

40 hours a week

Start date

Monday 7 September 2026

Duration

1 year 11 months

Positions available

1

Work

Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.

What you'll do at work

  • Research and answer enquiries, and assisting researchers
  • Helping with public engagement activities
  • Assist with the care and preservation of the collections housed at Covent Garden and the offsite stores
  • Enter information about archives into the Cataloguing Database and details of performances into the Performance Database
  • Assist with development of the collections and acquiring
    new material

Where you'll work

ROYAL OPERA HOUSE
COVENT GARDEN
LONDON
WC2E 9DD

Training

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

Training provider

WESTMINSTER CITY COUNCIL

Training course

Library, information and archive services assistant (level 3)

Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)

What you'll learn

Course contents
  • Interpret and implement policy, e.g. communicating clearly the basic copyright restrictions and reasons for not sharing personal data
  • Undertake regulation and compliance checking, e.g. in order to ensure data protection is not breached
  • Solve user problems in a range of situations using their knowledge and interpretation
  • Use information management processes to store, manage and retrieve records and data to support collaboration, exploitation and the organisation’s Information Management (IM) practices
  • Describe and arrange material/resources, by observing and applying identified cataloguing standards in order to create online catalogues and other finding aids to meet users’ needs
  • Employ information retrieval techniques to identify and use relevant media and systems, e.g. searching online databases, catalogues or physical stores, and EDRMS (electronic document record management systems)
  • Perform preservation (analogue/physical and digital) practices to keep collections physically safe using institutional/sector guidelines, and supporting work that provides digital access by creating alternatives that meet a range of user requirements
  • Use enquiry techniques to clarify and meet users’ information requirements and manage expectations, e.g. by signposting to alternative resources and providing solutions
  • Develop knowledge sharing with users, cultivating an environment where knowledge is freely shared and sought within a ‘safe’ environment, including online solutions
  • Use relevant approaches to learning support to contribute to the development of learning activities for different audiences to enhance knowledge and literacy, e.g. reader development
  • Select and use appropriate tools and technologies to support users in researching and disseminating information, e.g. databases, search engines, digital libraries, repositories and social media
  • Develop information and digital skills to support users to identify, find, access and evaluate information, to share knowledge and to promote self-help
  • Demonstrate information sharing by contributing to learning activities for specific audiences, e.g. inductions and events, catering to a variety of levels of knowledge and understanding
  • Use promotion techniques for resources so that users and potential users are aware of their value, impact and benefit, e.g. by curating collections and displays in effective ways, undertaking outreach activities to guide users to achieve independence in their use of information
  • Implement the organisation’s collection management policy, e.g. through identifying stock that should be acquired and that which is no longer used or needed, and relegating or removing these appropriately
  • Develop the service by assessing the learning environment and anticipating user needs, e.g. re-organising study/virtual spaces, suggesting improvements to catalogues or web pages
  • Use teamwork and collaboration to achieve goals, e.g. with stakeholders and partners beyond the organisation
  • Use information provision to enable users to access materials, e.g. through lending books/artefacts, emailing documents, accessing original archives, signposting links to information
  • Exercise communication skills - oral, written, presentation, interpersonal, listening, assertiveness (online and face to face)
  • Interpret and implement policy, e.g. communicating clearly the basic copyright restrictions and reasons for not sharing personal data
  • Undertake regulation and compliance checking, e.g. in order to ensure data protection is not breached
  • Solve user problems in a range of situations using their knowledge and interpretation
  • Use information management processes to store, manage and retrieve records and data to support collaboration, exploitation and the organisation’s Information Management (IM) practices
  • Describe and arrange material/resources, by observing and applying identified cataloguing standards in order to create online catalogues and other finding aids to meet users’ needs
  • Employ information retrieval techniques to identify and use relevant media and systems, e.g. searching online databases, catalogues or physical stores, and EDRMS (electronic document record management systems)
  • Perform preservation (analogue/physical and digital) practices to keep collections physically safe using institutional/sector guidelines, and supporting work that provides digital access by creating alternatives that meet a range of user requirements
  • Use enquiry techniques to clarify and meet users’ information requirements and manage expectations, e.g. by signposting to alternative resources and providing solutions
  • Develop knowledge sharing with users, cultivating an environment where knowledge is freely shared and sought within a ‘safe’ environment, including online solutions
  • Use relevant approaches to learning support to contribute to the development of learning activities for different audiences to enhance knowledge and literacy, e.g. reader development
  • Select and use appropriate tools and technologies to support users in researching and disseminating information, e.g. databases, search engines, digital libraries, repositories and social media
  • Develop information and digital skills to support users to identify, find, access and evaluate information, to share knowledge and to promote self-help
  • Demonstrate information sharing by contributing to learning activities for specific audiences, e.g. inductions and events, catering to a variety of levels of knowledge and understanding
  • Use promotion techniques for resources so that users and potential users are aware of their value, impact and benefit, e.g. by curating collections and displays in effective ways, undertaking outreach activities to guide users to achieve independence in their use of information
  • Implement the organisation’s collection management policy, e.g. through identifying stock that should be acquired and that which is no longer used or needed, and relegating or removing these appropriately
  • Develop the service by assessing the learning environment and anticipating user needs, e.g. re-organising study/virtual spaces, suggesting improvements to catalogues or web pages
  • Use teamwork and collaboration to achieve goals, e.g. with stakeholders and partners beyond the organisation
  • Use information provision to enable users to access materials, e.g. through lending books/artefacts, emailing documents, accessing original archives, signposting links to information
  • Exercise communication skills - oral, written, presentation, interpersonal, listening, assertiveness (online and face to face)

Training schedule

  • You will work towards a Library, Information and Archives Services Assistant Level 3 Apprenticeship Standard
  • The majority of the learning required to achieve the qualification will be done in the workplace
  • You will be released from the workplace to attend scheduled workshops or to undertake individual study
  • You will be supported throughout the apprenticeship by the Collections and the Apprenticeships team
  • Work is primarily carried out at our theatre in Covent Garden and at our storage facility in Purfleet, Essex

Requirements

Essential qualifications

GCSE in:

English (grade 4/C or above)

Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.

Skills

  • Communication skills
  • IT skills
  • Attention to detail
  • Organisation skills
  • Customer care skills
  • Administrative skills
  • Number skills
  • Team working
  • Excellent people skills
  • An interest in the arts
  • Good written/verbal English
  • Respect confidentiality
  • Self-motivated
  • Helpful, positive and flexible

Other requirements

You must be 18 years old or over on 7th September 2026. You must have work authorisation for the UK. You must not have completed a university degree or equivalent level qualification in the UK or elsewhere. You must have been normally resident in the UK for the last three years.

About this employer

We bring together the world’s most extraordinary artists in live, streamed and broadcast events and performances that thrill, move and excite; that transport people to other worlds. Our theatres are in London’s Covent Garden but our work is accessed and experienced across the UK and globally through touring partnerships, cinema programmes, free outdoor screenings, radio, TV and live-streaming.

http://www.roh.org.uk/apprenticeships (opens in new tab)

Disability Confident

Disability Confident

A fair proportion of interviews for this apprenticeship will be offered to applicants with a disability or long-term health condition. This includes non-visible disabilities and conditions.

You can choose to be considered for an interview under the Disability Confident scheme. You’ll need to meet the essential requirements to be considered for an interview.

After this apprenticeship

  • Able to secure entry level role in Library/Archive/Heritage organisation or similar
  • Put all skills learnt with the training provider, and with the Collections team, in to practice through participating in the day-to-day work of an archival team

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

WESTMINSTER CITY COUNCIL

apprentices@roh.org.uk

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000020173.

Apply now

Closes on Monday 20 April 2026

After signing in, you’ll apply for this apprenticeship on the company's website.