A woman seated at a computer looks at her screen, together with a man standing next her. The scene is partially obstructed by strips of wood screening off the area.
Historic England's London office at Cannon Bridge House © Historic England
Historic England's London office at Cannon Bridge House © Historic England

Emerging Talent Placements Programme

Historic England is working hard to improve diversity both in its workforce and in every aspect of the work we do.

Following on from the success of Historic England’s Heritage Inclusion Placements Programme we are pleased to announce the newly named Emerging Talent Placements Programme.

This will be an important factor in opening up careers in the heritage sector to audiences that are currently under-represented in the workforce. This programme is in line with the actions of our Inclusion, Diversity and Equality Strategy and our model for skills and employability in the sector.

In the summer of 2023, we offered 17 short–term (4 to 12 weeks) training placements across our offices for young people aged 16 to 30 years old across three audiences:

  • People with Black, Asian and minority ethnic
  • People with disabilities
  • People who are disadvantaged by their social and/or economic background or circumstances

We are taking positive action by providing training opportunities to tackle under-representation in the heritage workforce.

It’s important to understand that these are not jobs but short-term placements which provide training opportunities across a variety of roles in the heritage sector and our organisation. Participants will not receive a salary or wage, but a training bursary to cover living expenses.

Meet the placements

Read what they say about the Emerging Talent Programme

Background information

Positive action is one of the government’s range of measures aimed at ending discrimination in the workplace. It enables employers to use training programmes to address the under-representation of particular groups. In March 2016, the government published the Culture White Paper and challenged Historic England and other nationally funded cultural organisations to develop and share strategies for improving workforce diversity.

We are pleased to be working with the following partners to offer our emerging talent placements to young people who are receiving their support and who are registered on their various employability programmes.

For any enquiries regarding the Emerging Talent Placement programme, please contact us via our email address at [email protected]

Working with

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Leonard Cheshire
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