Visitor Experience Manager

Overall purpose of the role

We are looking for an exceptional person to manage and lead our Visitor Experience Team (VET). Yorkshire Sculpture Park’s mission is to inspire everyone to enjoy and engage with art, nature, creativity and our shared humanity and the Visitor Experience Team play a vital role in achieving this. Giving due regard to the diversity of audiences that YSP attracts, the team help our 240,000 annual visitors to feel safe and comfortable exploring the Park’s 500 acres and gallery spaces by creating an inclusive, accessible and welcoming experience for all.

It’s an exciting time to join YSP, as 2027 is our 50th anniversary and there are planned investments in systems, programme and infrastructure to help support the delivery of ambitious visitor targets.

The team are only able to achieve their objectives through collaborative working across all parts of the organisation. They aim to deliver a joined up and seamless welcome and experience is for all visitors. The team facilitate the promotion and delivery of some visitor activities as well as support the achievement of financial goals through selling tickets, memberships, gift aid or other fundraising initiatives.

It’s important that everyone in the team (including volunteers) are motivated, trained and are clear of their roles and responsibilities. They will be regularly kept informed of the artistic programme, learning programme and other opportunities for visitors.
As the Visitor Experience Manager, you will lead the team by setting and modelling excellence in customer service standards and then through data capture (e.g. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system), observation and feedback you will identify opportunities to improve and enhance the visitor experience.

Key responsibilities

Overview

You will work with colleagues and the senior leadership team to define and deliver a high-quality visitor experience. Through visible leadership you will ensure that all elements of the visitor experience meet expected customer service standards from the moment a visitor books their visit through to the completion of their time with us. You will champion accessibility and be mindful that each visitor will have different expectations, needs and requirements from their visit. Using data capture, audience surveys and observations you will track and monitor the visitor journey and take steps where necessary to make improvements to ensure that standards are always met.

Welcome and ticketing

You will ensure that all visitors receive a warm welcome, no matter the purpose of their visit and feel supported and cared for.

Working with the Ticketing Supervisor you will ensure that the ticketing system and process operates effectively, with staff fully trained and able to get maximum benefit from the system. You will link with the CRM to ensure that data captured helps to support the wider goals of YSP.

Visitor journey

You will have responsibility for the visitor journey across the whole site, ensuring this is regularly reviewed and recommendations implemented to increase visitor satisfaction. This will be achieved by ensuring that on-site orientation (including maps) and signage is clear, up to date, and supports visitors to get the most from their visit. Working with Head of Estates, you will consider access requirements around the Park.

You will ensure that relevant messaging at key touch points reflects organisational priorities and initiatives. You will work with the Marketing & PR Team to ensure brand guidelines are followed.

Visitor Experience

You will lead on the visitor experience, ensuring that expected standards are delivered by the team and identify requirements for any significant investments to improve the visitor experience.

With colleagues (especially Learning and Curatorial) you will coordinate seasonal (e.g. summer, school holidays) programmes of activities to enhance the visitor experience over specific peak visitor times. Where appropriate you will also ensure support for the delivery of digital on-site engagement.

Your team will ensure that support is in place for VIP and group visits and will provide ad hoc tours of exhibitions and the landscape. You will also work with the commercial team to identify opportunities to create a range of income generating tours and experiences.

Sculptures, exhibitions and landscape

You will manage the Senior Gallery Manager to ensure that they support the curatorial team in the care and safety of exhibitions, sculptures, installations and artwork across YSP.

Feedback and evaluation

It’s important to ensure that operations are regularly reviewed so that our standards and visitor expectations continue to be met. You will achieve this by keeping up to date with latest external visitor trends, expectations and through collating feedback from various internal sources.

You will monitor gallery attendance and usage, identify issues and provide feedback to colleagues to help adjust current or future exhibitions.

Training and development of VET staff & Volunteers

The Visitor Experience Team play a key role in the delivery of the visitor experience and customer service standards. It’s therefore important that annual management processes are implemented, including making sure that up to date role profiles are in place.

Through effective communication all staff will be made aware of the latest programme of events and exhibitions or latest YSP initiative.

You will support the VET Volunteer Supervisor to ensure that volunteers are recruited, trained and fully supported, while looking at options to help grow the volunteer pool.

You will ensure that processes are in place so that all staff, including temporary staff and volunteers, receive adequate training to deliver their roles successfully, this will include (but not limited to):

• customer service standards
• accessibility, disability awareness, safeguarding and EDI
• Health & Safety, COSHH, Fire Safety, manual handling
• specific training and knowledge relating to exhibitions
• upselling techniques (e.g. gift aid tickets)

Health and Safety / Safeguarding department lead

Working with the Deputy Director and H&S Advisor you will ensure that all relevant risk assessments and supporting information is up to date and shared with the team. You will be the departmental lead for Safeguarding and Health & Safety ensuring that appropriate first aid arrangements are in place for safe operation of the site. You will collate visitor H&S issues, incidents and take appropriate follow up actions.

Budget management

You will manage and report on the delegated budget for visitor experience (£1m ticketed income and £0.5m expenditure), including quarterly forecasting and making adjustments to ensure financial targets are achieved. You will also support any onsite fundraising initiatives to increase income to YSP (e.g. Gift Aid, membership, Walk of Art).

Based on current trends and visitor feedback and agreed financial targets you will contribute to the ticketing and pricing strategy for the park.

Other

Recruit, induct and provide on-going support for direct reports, ensuring that annual objectives are in place, providing appropriate training and development plus performance management.

• In the absence of Duty Managers provide on-site cover
• Represent VET at internal meetings and represent YSP at relevant external meetings.
• Work with Visit England to coordinate and lead on inspections.
• Ensure that activities are carried out in line with YSP’s environmental policy and identify areas for improvement.
• Take a lead on any external relationships that support the visitor experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience Required

Essential

• Over 5 years’ experience in a role supporting visitor experience ideally in the heritage, museum or cultural sector
• Strong people management skills with experience of managing, leading and motivating teams
• Understanding of how to use data and research to make improvements to visitor experiences
• Experience of collaborative and team working, including working with external partners
• Knowledge and experience of using ticketing systems
• Awareness of inclusive approaches to visitor experience
• Experience of health and safety and risk management associated with a public venue

Desirable

• Budget management experience
• Work in a visual arts organisation
• Experience of being a Safeguarding lead
• Volunteer management

What we’re offering

Contract: Permanent

Salary: £36,000 to £42,000

Hours of work: 37.5 hours (with consideration of part-time work to 0.8 FTE)The post holder will be expected to work weekends and undertake occasional evening work as required

Holidays: 33 days pa rising to 38 days per annum (including bank/public holidays)

Probationary Period: 6 months

Notice Period: 1 week notice during probationary period and three months notice following successful completion of probationary period

Place of Work: Yorkshire Sculpture Park, West Bretton, Wakefield, WF4 4LG

How to apply

Please complete the following forms:-

– YSP Application form
– Equal Opportunities Monitoring form

Both forms can be downloaded here.

Please forward completed forms to recruitment@ysp.org.uk

The deadline for all applications is midday Monday 14th September 2026

Interviews are planned to take place on the 29th September 2026