Herbarium Curator (Plant Collector)

Job reference REQ0001532
Application closing date: 09/02/2022
Job Title: Herbarium Curator (Plant Collector)
Location: RHS Garden Wisley
Salary: £20,272 per annum
Hours: 37.5 per week
Contract type: Permanent

We have an exciting opportunity for a Plant Collector to join our supportive and friendly team in the RHS’s 1851 Royal Commission Herbarium, the UK’s largest herbarium dedicated to cultivated plants, located in our new state-of-the-art facilities in the Hilltop building in the gardens at Wisley.  We are embarking on a major project, part-funded by the NLHF, to build our herbarium to include representative specimens of as many different plants in cultivation in the UK.

As Herbarium Curator (Plant Collecting) you will be a vital part of the project, through collection, recording, and preparation of specimens for deposit in the herbarium.  You will also be organising the annual collecting programme, liaising with living collection holders at RHS and other gardens and supervising and coaching a team of volunteers based in the RHS’s gardens.

Applicants will have practical experience in plant collecting along with a willingness to travel within the UK and great people skills.

To work for the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is to join a thriving charity, whose mission is to inspire everyone to grow. Everything we do is built on the transformational power of gardening – and the benefits it brings to people, places and our planet.

Known globally for our inspirational Shows and five spectacular Gardens, our work extends to leading ground-breaking climate research, running community outreach programmes, and setting the standards in horticultural education. With the recent opening of RHS Garden Bridgewater and Hilltop, the world’s first dedicated Centre for Gardening Science, at RHS Garden Wisley, there has never been a more exciting time to be part of our journey to make the UK a greener, and more beautiful place.

And we couldn’t do this without our people. We’re proud of the knowledge, enthusiasm and ideas that each one of our team members brings. From working across our social media channels, to volunteering in the Gardens, from serving customers in our Garden Centres to running national marketing campaigns, we believe that every member of the RHS team should have the opportunity to make a difference.

The RHS provides a number of great benefits for employees including:

Free parking for staff working at one of the five gardens
Free access to all RHS Gardens and Flower Shows
20% discount on all RHS Retail
Discounted food and drink from the catering outlets at the gardens
Employee discounts at high street retailer and cash back scheme
25 days’ holiday (increasing to 28 and 30 with service)
Bike to work scheme
Pension with employers’ contribution, which increases with length of service
Employee Assistance Programme for staff and immediate family
Monthly Garden magazine and access to gardening advice
Sponsorship for external studies

Safeguarding and Inclusion

The RHS is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk and expects all personnel to share in this commitment.  We are an inclusive employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.