Summary

Historic England is the public organisation that brings new life to heritage to build a better future for every place and everyone.

Historic England has a fantastic opportunity for you to join us as our Archaeological Conservator (Maritime).

This is a Full Time, 24 Months Fixed-Term Contract.

The location of this role is Portsmouth, inclusive with hybrid working.

We offer a wide benefits package including a competitive defined benefit pension scheme to which we make 28.97% employer contributions, a generous 28 days holiday, corporate discounts, free entry into English Heritage sites across the country and development opportunities to ensure you achieve your goals.

To view our full range of benefits please follow the link here.

What you will be doing

As our Archaeological Conservator (Maritime), you will provide expertise in the analysis, interpretation and reporting of artefactual assemblages and historic features on Historic England projects, on projects undertaken in collaboration with universities and other IROs and on commissioned projects. You will undertake innovative heritage science research in support of the Historic England Strategic Plan, including leading on and commissioning projects. You will actively engage in increasing the public value and impact of your research including developing and taking part in public engagement activities. You will champion archaeological conservation, seeking opportunities to present HE work at national and international fora. An important part of your role will be to manage the Marine Conservation Facility, including providing access, training and supervision of external users. You will develop and contribute to the delivery of training as part of disseminating best practice and developing capacity in archaeological conservation. 

You will work closely with other marine specialist colleagues across Historic England and to ensure the organisation delivers a seamless service on all relevant marine issues.  

As part of this role you will receive on-the -job training in the conservation of artefacts recovered from marine environments based on your current experience and learning needs. You will also undertake training in project management.  

Please note that: 

• the role may require travel, including to sites not serviced by public transport and sites which may have challenging access, for example stairwells, confined spaces, heights or places with low lighting 

• the role also involves working outdoors or in cold buildings and may require overnight stays for joint working, attending meetings and training 

• the work entails reasonable lifting of heavy/bulky objects within published health and safety guidelines on manual handling. 

Who we are looking for

• Professional qualifications (or equivalent experience) in conservation

• Experience of conserving artefacts recovered from archaeological sites

• Experience of using of X-radiography and/or vacuum freeze drying

• Experience in communication complex research of findings to wide audiences (including non-specialists)

• Excellent collaboration skills

• Experience of providing training or mentoring in archaeological conservation.

Please note your application will be scored and assessed against the above criteria.

Historic England is a Disability Confident Leader and normally offers guaranteed interviews to disabled candidates who meet the minimum criteria for the role, where it is practical and appropriate to do so. We want all candidates to shine in the recruitment process, so please tell us what we can do to help you show us your very best self. For more information, please visit our Everyone is Welcome page, or contact us at recruitmentTeam@Historicengland.org.uk if you have any recruitment queries.

We are an equal opportunity employer which values diversity and inclusion. If you have a disability or neurodiversity, we would be happy to discuss reasonable adjustments to the job with you. Having won the Gold Award from MIND for workplace wellbeing in seven consecutive years, we also recognise the importance of a healthy work-life balance.

We are an inclusive employer and believe that flexible working options are for everyone. We want to make sure our working arrangements don’t prevent anyone from joining us because of their personal circumstances. We also want to provide you with the best balance in your home and work life that we can.

We are open to considering options including job sharing, part-time working, compressed hours working and different working locations, including hybrid working. Please visit our jobs pages or contact us to find out more.

Why work for Historic England

We are committed to promoting equality of opportunity for everyone. Diversity helps us to perform better and attract more people to support our work. We welcome and encourage job applications from people of all backgrounds.

We particularly encourage applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates and candidates with disabilities as they are underrepresented within Historic England at this level.

Historic England wants all of our candidates to shine in the recruitment process. Please tell us what we can do to make sure you can show us your very best self. You can contact us by email at recruitmentTeam@Historicengland.org.uk if you have any recruitment queries. 

At Historic England we use a hiring system called Applied. Applied is a behavioural science-backed recruitment platform that reduces bias, improves quality of hire and increases diversity. We do not use CV application for the majority of our hiring processes. You will answer a selection of questions that allow our hiring teams to test your skills and suitability for the role.

At Historic England, we value the expertise and individuality each candidate brings and want to hear about this in your own words. If you require the use or AI tools or other resources to support your application, we ask that all information is factually accurate, original, and reflects your own experience. To best represent yourself, we encourage you to write in your own words and use AI-generated content only as inspiration—not as direct input.

Provisional interview dates: 5th October 2026

Please follow the link for a full copy of the Job Description –