Amelia Silver

What attracted you to the museum sector?

I loved history at school, so I always knew I would have a career that had something to do with history. It was my aunt who first suggested the idea of working in heritage. When I was about nine or ten, she told me that if she had never been a nurse, she would have wanted to bring history to the people.

This was much more appealing to me than pure academia. It felt like an avenue to make more of a difference to how people see the world. I like history that makes it personal, that makes people think about their place in the world and the people who came before them. I want to be able to imagine myself in the place of someone in history who isn’t that different to me. That’s what makes museums so exciting to me, and that’s what made we want to work in one.

How has the Curating for Change Fellowship helped you?

The fellowship has really helped me get my foot in the door of the museum sector. There’s a lot of exposure that comes with the role, everyone is interested in what we’re doing, and this has helped with networking and making connections in the museum world. The opportunities I have been offered are amazing. I have spoken at the Museums Association conference, I’ve been featured in the Museum Development Yorkshire newsletter, and I was a guest on the Museums n’That Podcast.

The programme has given me all the confidence and support I need with my disability, and I’ve never been made to feel like an inconvenience. CfC has arranged plenty of training for us and continues to support us throughout the placement. I know that if I have any problems or just want to chat about something, the Curating for Change team is there for me.

One of the lasting impacts of the programme will be the community we have formed within the group of fellows and trainees – we have all become friends really quickly and we all have similar experiences. It’s nice to think there will be a whole generation of disabled curators out there and we will be able to support each other in our careers.

What would you say to people wanting to work in the sector?

Do it! I understand it can be difficult to get your foot in the door, but there are paid programmes and traineeships out there to help you. Volunteering is also a great way to learn some museum skills and find out about employment opportunities before they go on job sites.

You can turn your disability into a strength – you have a level of lived experience that not everyone has. You can use this to your advantage.

Experience that you might not think is relevant could actually be relevant. I’ve used the skills I learned from three years of working in retail countless times – window display is a lot like case display, social skills from talking to customers help me make connections with co-creators and museum partners, and retail management skills help me communicate with colleagues at all levels. I’ve even used my A-level graphic design skills to make labels, panels and posters.