Town Mill - Volunteers

THE TOWN MILL LYME REGIS Dorset, England


		BECOME A MILL VOLUNTEER

		Can you help the Town Mill? The Town Mill was rescued from dereliction and restored to working order by a dedicated band of citizens between 1991 and 2001. They raised over £500,000 to finance this brave undertaking, with much of the design and reconstruction work being carried out by local businesses and volunteer helpers. This imaginative enterprise, bringing back to life an important part of Lyme’s history and extending its uses to suit the modern town, is operated by a Charitable Trust relying almost wholly on volunteers to keep it running and to foster its growth. So we always need more help!

Would you like to join us? The Town Mill has an immediate, and on-going, need for extra volunteer help in three vital areas: Milling, the Mill Gift Shop and Art Gallery Stewards. While some of our volunteers are able to make a regular (say, once-a-week) commitment, others can give only a few hours here and there. We welcome all help, great or small.



		What the mill offers you Volunteering at the Town Mill is enjoyable and rewarding. You’ll find that enthusiastic, generous and friendly people make up the teams that keep the mill, the shop, the galleries and the garden humming. And you will meet a stimulating variety of visitors, of all ages, who are almost invariably fascinated by the mill complex and its various operations. Our visitors clearly appreciate the way that volunteer guides and stewards look after them, which makes it all worthwhile.

No tangible recognition of the work of our volunteers can begin to match the value of their essential contribution to sustaining the Town Mill - a labour of love can be rewarded only in kind - but the Trust is able to offer each volunteer the following benefits for you and your immediate family:

• free entry to the mill; • 10% discount in the mill shop, pottery, framing studio, art galleries, and café; • invitations to previews of all art exhibitions; • regular newsletters to help you keep in touch; • opportunities for social get-togethers of mill volunteers and supporters.


		Our key needs are:

		Milling Volunteers. Milling is not necessarily a male activity - our team of millers contains both men and women. The traditional machinery is worked by water power and gravity: millers manage the process, explaining to visitors - an average of over 7,000 per year - what is happening and answering their questions. (Children often have the most interesting ones ...)

An experienced volunteer miller coordinates and supports the rest of the team, giving all new volunteers the necessary training and practice; even the least mechanical among the millers quickly gain confidence and a feeling of satisfaction as finely-ground wholemeal flour appears under their supervision.



Mill Gift Shop Volunteers. Volunteers in the mill shop receive and welcome visitors, control mill admissions and handle shop sales. The mill shop is a gregarious place: interesting chat with all sorts of visitors from far and wide quickly develops. The mill and shop are open six-days a week, Tuesday to Sunday, from Easter to October, but just at weekends in the winter. Each milling and shop ‘shift’ is two-and-a-half hours, morning or afternoon.


		Volunteer Gallery Stewards. The Town Mill Galleries are a source of interest and pleasure to visitors and a showcase for local artists, with the opportunity to sell their work. The galleries are open throughout the year, displaying a wonderful variety of art from our region; normally, each exhibition lasts for a month. Gallery stewards are important to the smooth running of the exhibitions. They welcome visitors and answer questions - or guide questioners to the source of answers. They keep a watchful eye on the exhibits, record visitor numbers, and note down details of potential purchases.

Stewards meet a variety of visitors with different perspectives on the exhibitions, but are not expected to be knowledgeable about art. For those who are, the opportunity to see all the exhibitions and to talk to the artists is a special bonus. Stewarding sessions, in a peaceful and reflective setting, last either two or two-and-a-half hours, depending on the season - and you can catch up on your reading during quiet periods!



Please come forward! If you are able and willing to help, please contact the Mill Manager by telephone or email - details are at the bottom of this page. Alternatively, if you’d like to find out more about the Town Mill first, please visit us and speak to the volunteers who will be running the mill.


	The Town Mill Mill Lane, Lyme Regis, Dorset DT7 3PU, England Tel: 01297 443579 e-mail info@townmill.org.uk