Organizer Information
The Sherborne is an arts and cultural venue in Sherborne, Dorset, England, housed in a Grade I listed Georgian townhouse on Newland. The building was designed around 1720 for the politician and landowner Henry Seymour Portman, and contains a mural by Sir James Thornhill covering the staircase hall and ceiling with figures from Greek mythology — the most significant artwork in the town. After operating for decades as a private residence, a girls' school and later a much-loved arts centre, the house closed roughly twenty years ago, was placed on the national register of buildings at risk, and was eventually sold by the local authority in 2007 after restoration was judged unaffordable. The property was purchased under the Sherborne House Trust in 2018; the Trust is an independent charitable trust (registered charity number 1179440), and proceeds from membership, hospitality, retail and events support the arts programme alongside the preservation of the house, gardens and Thornhill mural.The restoration was a passion project of the late West Country entrepreneur Michael Cannon, realised less than a year after his death, and was carried out by local architecture practice Spase working alongside Historic England and Dorset Council, upgrading the medieval wing and refurbishing the Georgian rooms; specialists uncovered a Tudor kitchen and Victorian water chambers during the works.
A glass-and-timber pavilion built from sustainable materials links the house to its landscaped garden, and the venue houses an in-house brasserie and bar. The public programme spans exhibitions, interactive arts events, cinema screenings, live music recitals and literary talks, and recent gallery programming has included group exhibitions of photography, ceramics, papercuts and sculpture, work by Dorset Visual Arts collectives, and a mural by Sir Quentin Blake for the atrium staircase shown alongside work by Mat Collishaw. The source lists the employer as SHT 2018 and states that the organisation is evolving into a fully independent charity, with recognition to date including a Muddy Stilettos Arts, Culture & Theatre award and an RICS regional award.
Title & Description
Programmer / Curator — The Sherborne, Sherborne, Dorset
The Programmer/Curator is a newly created post at The Sherborne, working under the aegis of the CEO to lead the development and delivery of the organisation's artistic and cultural programme across exhibitions, sculpture and outdoor commissions, performance, and artist residencies. The source describes it as a foundational role, shaping what the venue shows, who it platforms, and how its artistic ambition is realised in practice.
The postholder is expected to build a programme that platforms artists who live, work and play in the South West alongside work of national and international standing, drawing on themes from the region's history and heritage as well as the concerns of contemporary practice, and to ensure the programme reaches a broad public in line with the standards expected by national funders such as Arts Council England and the Heritage Lottery. The role works closely with the CEO, the Head of Development and the wider team to ensure the programme is ambitious, well-resourced, and aligned with the organisation's mission.
Specific programme ambitions named in the listing include The Sherborne's contribution to Sherborne's year as Dorset Town of Culture 2027, the emerging ambition for a Wessex Culture Trail across art forms, and the reactivation of the venue's historic Art Room as a hands-on space for painting and making rather than a space that only displays art. The CEO's message also sets out an intention to consolidate and extend the existing talks programme and literary evenings, and to launch a literature salon, art and absinthe evenings, a natural world café and music nights as regular fixtures — framed as a contemporary response to the building's nineteenth-century history, when William Charles Macready hosted literary and scientific salons attended by Charles Dickens, Robert Browning and William Makepeace Thackeray.
The Role Overview
- Position Type: Listed simultaneously as Full-time and Part-time (the source does not resolve which, or state an FTE percentage)
- Contract Type: Permanent
- Salary: £35,000 – £40,000 per year
- Reports To: The CEO (the role works "under the aegis of the CEO")
- Department / Programme: Artistic and cultural programme — exhibitions, sculpture and outdoor commissions, performance, artist residencies
- Working Hours: Not specified in the source
- Work Location: In person
- Institutional Context: Grade I listed Georgian townhouse operating galleries, sculpture garden, heritage spaces, indoor and outdoor performance, learning and outreach, and a restaurant, café and events operation; organisation opened in 2024 and is transitioning to a fully independent charity
Position & Tasks
- Artistic programme and curation
- With the CEO, lead the curatorial vision and delivery of exhibitions across the galleries and garden, working to a published, forward-planned programme
- Orchestrate outdoor horticultural and artistic site-responsive work, building on existing partnerships, including input into the town's developing public sculpture programme
- Develop a programme of indoor and outdoor performance, working with external partners, promoters and touring companies, artists and freelance creatives
- Design and deliver an artist residency programme, including food artist residencies, with a clear public and learning offer attached to each residency
- Reignite the Art Room as a hands-on space for painting, making and participation
- Introduce a wellbeing strand, including yoga, mindfulness and similar sessions, making use of the gardens and historic spaces alongside the arts programme
- Strategic development
- Develop and implement a multi-year programming strategy aligned with the organisation's mission and funding ambitions, including preparation for Arts Council England's strategy for artistic excellence, reach and inclusion
- Contribute programming expertise to grant applications and funder reporting, working closely with the Head of Development
- Help shape The Sherborne's contribution to Sherborne's Town of Culture year, and to the emerging ambition for a Wessex Culture Trail across art forms
- Partnerships and reputation
- Support the building and sustaining of relationships with artists, galleries, museums, funders and touring partners regionally, nationally and internationally
- Represent The Sherborne within the regional and national cultural sector, raising its profile as an art, culinary and heritage voice
- Operations and compliance
- Work with the operations/estates team on the practical delivery of exhibitions and events, including installation, conservation, insurance and visitor experience standards
- Support the CEO and EA in the execution of exhibitions, including registrar duties and loans applications
- Manage the programming budget and report on artistic KPIs against funder and Board expectations
Categories
- Curatorial Practice
- Exhibition Making
- Visual Arts
- Sculpture & Public Art
- Performing Arts Programming
- Heritage & Historic House Practice
- Arts Administration
- Cultural Programming
- Artist Residencies
- Learning & Public Engagement
Eligibility
- Two years' experience curating or programming within a gallery, museum, arts centre or comparable cultural organisation (stated as essential)
- A demonstrable track record of developing and delivering an ambitious public-facing programme, including working with living artists
- Excellent networks across the visual arts and/or performance sectors
- A self-starter with strong organisational and communication skills
- Experience contributing to funding applications and public-facing interpretation
- The ability to work collaboratively across a small, multidisciplinary team
- Desirable, not mandatory: experience programming within a heritage or historic-house setting
- Desirable, not mandatory: experience of Arts Council England or comparable national funder relationships
- Desirable, not mandatory: existing networks within the South West's cultural sector
Program Benefits
- Annual salary of £35,000 – £40,000
- Permanent contract
- Company pension
- Employee discount
- On-site parking
- Health or medical insurance: Not specified in the source
- Dental/vision coverage: Not specified in the source
- Tax or gross/net notes: Not specified in the source
- Vacation days and statutory holidays: Not specified in the source
- Paid closures or additional leave: Not specified in the source
- Lieu time: Not specified in the source
- Probation period before benefits activate: Not specified in the source
- Professional development allowance or employer-provided training: Not specified in the source
- Flexible work arrangements: Not specified in the source (work location is stated as in person)
Application Fee
None
How to Apply?
Not specified in the source. The listing gives no application portal URL, email address, or subject line.
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: Ongoing
- Programme context date: Sherborne's year as Dorset Town of Culture is stated as 2027
Location
Newland, Sherborne DT9 3JG, Dorset, England, United Kingdom
Additional Details
- The post is newly created; the source presents it as a foundational role in shaping the organisation's cultural identity from the beginning.
- The CEO states that the programme will be shaped jointly, drawing on the CEO's own artistic direction and leadership — the role is not fully autonomous in curatorial decision-making.
- The remit is unusually broad for a single post, spanning exhibitions, outdoor and site-responsive commissions, performance, residencies, participatory workshop provision, wellbeing programming, talks and literary events, plus budget management and registrar duties.
- The organisation is working towards national funding streams that assess artistic excellence, reach and relevance, and preparation for Arts Council England's assessment framework is written into the role.
- The venue combines galleries, a sculpture garden, heritage spaces, performance, learning and outreach, and a restaurant, café and events operation within a Grade I listed building, which carries conservation and compliance obligations for exhibition delivery.