{"id":148,"date":"2024-08-14T16:52:16","date_gmt":"2024-08-14T15:52:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/?page_id=148"},"modified":"2026-07-24T18:22:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-24T17:22:17","slug":"volunteer-opportunties","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/volunteer-opportunties\/","title":{"rendered":"Get Involved"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Volunteers help us to research, care for, and share the history of Ballast Hills Burial Ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can support a one-off event, complete a short research task, help on site, or become involved in the longer-term development of the project. You do not need previous experience, and some opportunities can be completed from home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong>Help needed now!<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-cyan-blue-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3e55074c06004cd28223ad21bf4f611d\">Heritage Open Days 2026<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>We are looking for volunteers to help deliver a full day of free activities on <strong>Saturday, 19 September 2026<\/strong>, at Ballast Hills Burial Ground and Brinkburn St Brewery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/2026\/07\/22\/heritage-open-days-2026-at-ballast-hills\/\">Ballast Hills offer<\/a> will include family activities, displays, brewery tours, opportunities to explore the burial ground, a performance of <em>Beneath This Ground<\/em>, and an evening <em>Twilight at Ballast Hills<\/em> session.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Volunteers can help by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>welcoming visitors and explaining the programme;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>supporting activities and displays;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>acting as site stewards;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>helping visitors use the Explorer\u2019s Guide;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>assisting with the performance and twilight session;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>taking photographs and gathering feedback; or<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>helping to prepare materials before the event.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>You can volunteer for part of the day or support a particular activity. Briefing and guidance will be provided.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-cyan-blue-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-56c1937f8b503aa7956fdc6f08bf1b7d\"><strong>Ballast Hills Explorer\u2019s Guide<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>We are redeveloping the <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/2026\/05\/05\/new-funding-to-redevelop-the-ballast-hills-explorers-guide\/\">Ballast Hills Explorer\u2019s Guide<\/a> and would welcome volunteers who can test the guide, comment on its content and activities, and help us improve its clarity, accessibility, and appeal to different age groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You do not need specialist knowledge. Feedback from people who are new to the burial ground will be particularly useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-cyan-blue-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9f77dd07e6e31824fe3d55c05deb728e\"><strong>Other ways to help<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>You can also support the project through:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Historical research:<\/strong> investigate people, families, occupations, or themes connected with the burial ground.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Records and data:<\/strong> help to transcribe, check, and organise burial records, gravestone inscriptions, photographs, and research information.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Site care:<\/strong> join <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/2026\/07\/08\/green-days-continue-at-ballast-hills\/\">Green Days<\/a> and other activities that help care for the burial ground.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Events and engagement:<\/strong> welcome visitors, support activities, gather feedback, or help prepare resources.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Communications:<\/strong> contribute to blog posts, newsletters, photography, social media, or volunteer updates.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Friends of Ballast Hills Burial Ground:<\/strong> support the long-term care and future of the site.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-cyan-blue-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1ffc82a054e8d1af0a31aabaa3645655\"><strong>Why volunteer?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Volunteering offers an opportunity to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>contribute to the understanding and care of an important Newcastle heritage site;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>develop research, communication, heritage, or event skills;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>meet other people interested in local history; and<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>help make the stories of Ballast Hills accessible to a wider public.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>You can decide how much time you wish to contribute. Opportunities range from short, one-off tasks to longer-term involvement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-cyan-blue-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ac7e7c8a1ea5470ff08203d2781e7675\"><strong>Get involved<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Please complete our\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/forms.office.com\/e\/LWE3kZ4fF3?origin=lprLink\">Expression of Interest Form<\/a> or email <a href=\"mailto:ballast.hills@newcastle.ac.uk\">ballast.hills@newcastle.ac.uk<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tell us which activities interest you and how much time you may be able to offer. Please mention <strong>Heritage Open Days 2026<\/strong> or the <strong>Explorer\u2019s Guide<\/strong> if you are interested in either current opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Volunteers are asked to read our <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/files\/2025\/06\/241103-NU-BHBG-Voluteer-Policy.pdf\">Volunteer Policy<\/a>\u00a0and sign our\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/files\/2025\/06\/241103-NU-BHBG-Volunteer-Agreement-and-Code-of-Conduct.pdf\">Volunteer Agreement<\/a>, which can be returned by email or brought to a volunteer event. Once registered, we will match your interests with suuitable opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Every contribution helps us to uncover, care for, and share the stories of Ballast Hills Burial Ground.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Volunteers help us to research, care for, and share the history of Ballast Hills Burial Ground. You can support a one-off event, complete a short research task, help on site, or become involved in the longer-term development of the project. You do not need previous experience, and some opportunities can be completed from home. Help &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/volunteer-opportunties\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Get Involved&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5556,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-148","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/148","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5556"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=148"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/148\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":824,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/148\/revisions\/824"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/ballast-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=148"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}