Fort Amherst’s diverse team of skilled and friendly volunteers
keep the Fort running smoothly. If you have time to spare and
a skill to share, we’d love to hear from you!
Current roles: Tour Guide; Visitor Welcome; Office Support;
General Maintenance; Gardener; Events; Cannon and
Ordnance Restoration.
Training is provided to all volunteers, and will include:
Familiarisation with the site and staff
Induction and health & safety training
Role-specific training
To find out more about volunteering, please
contact the Fort Amherst General Manager:
Grounds & Maintenance Volunteer at Fort Amherst Heritage Trust
“I work in lots of different areas of the Fort, from maintaining the grounds to helping on our events. I've enjoyed making new friends, it's been great for my mental health and I've enjoyed learning new skills.”
Tour Guide
Help our visitors explore over 300 years of history.
Lead tours of up to 25 visitors around the Fort Amherst Tunnels and grounds.
The role requires:
Knowledge of Fort history, particularly Napoleonic period and World War II
Friendly, enthusiastic and confident communicator
Ability to consistently deliver interesting tours to a variety of audiences
Ensure site and visitors are safe and secure
Visitor Welcome
Be the friendly face of Fort Amherst and engage our visitors. The role requires:
Greet and welcome visitors, answer questions and give directions
Enrich visitor experience with stories, fun facts and anecdotes
Ensure site and visitors are safe and secure
Office Support
Based in our main office, play a vital role in the running of Fort Amherst.
The role requires:
Good organisation and a polite manner
Dealing with phone and email enquiries and updating databases
Assisting with events as required
General Maintenance
Help preserve Fort Amherst for future generations. Opportunities are varied;
you can even gain experience, skills and qualifications.
Strict adherence to health and safety guidelines
Repairs, maintenance, painting, basic carpentry, building and plumbing
Carrying items around the site
Preparation and clearing up for events
Interaction with the public (they may be curious about your role!)
Gardener
Do you have ‘green fingers’? Help us to maintain Fort Amherst’s historically significant
grounds. Opportunities are varied; you can even gain experience, skills and qualifications.
The role requires:
Strict adherence to health and safety guidelines
Grass cutting, weeding, strimming, planting and pruning
Care of Victorian Allotments, Memorial garden, Herb Garden and Picnic Area
Clearing of undergrowth
Events
Fort Amherst offers a varied programme of events, and we need to ensure that our
visitors have a high-quality and enjoyable experience. If you are time-flexible, friendly
and prepared to ‘muck in’, please get in touch.
The role requires:
Assisting with setting up and clearing away events
Liaising with suppliers and performers
Stewarding, litter-picking, administration … and possibly more!
Supporting the promotion of Fort Amherst at events
Cannon and Ordnance Restoration
This team has a passion for conserving and restoring a whole range of cannons and
military ordnance for display. We request that you have some aptitude for carpentry,
metalwork repair, use of power tools and good DIY skills – and the desire to learn new
skills, too. We would love to hear from volunteers with conservation techniques.
The role requires:
Strict adherence to health and safety guidelines
Repair and maintenance of historical cannons and ordnance
Building and maintaining cannon carriages
Movement and siting of items
Fort Amherst Heritage
Trust
FORT AMHERST HERITAGE TRUST
Fort Amherst’s restoration is due to the dedication of its Trust members and volunteers.
We are actively seeking trustees with a variety of skills to help us with this important
work. We welcome you to enquire to find out more.
The Trust Objectives:
“Acquiring, restoring, maintaining, safeguarding and preserving the
historical fortifications known as Fort Amherst and the Lines in the
City of Rochester-Upon Medway and the Borough of Gillingham in
the county of Kent, and making the same available for research and
for the educational and recreational viewing and use by the public.”
About Fort Amherst Heritage Trust:
Fort Amherst Heritage Trust owns the freehold of almost the entire site, which is a scheduled
ancient monument, designated in 1959 (1003364 - known as Brompton Lines).
Fort Amherst Heritage Trust depends on volunteers to maintain and operate the Fort.
The Trust has developed a culture of social responsibility and integration with the local
community.
Fort Amherst Heritage Trust was formed in 1998 as a charitable company limited by Guarantee
(charity number 1102399, company number 4362306). It succeeded the Fort Amherst & Lines
Trust, and in 2010 merged with Medway Historical Ordnance, a separate Charity established to
preserve and maintain the Fort’s nationally important collection of historical ordnance.
DAVID LENEHAN
David Lenehan has been a Fort Amherst
Volunteer for over 2 years.
He has helped with many tasks, from grass
cutting and grounds work to taking an active
role in the monthly Ghost Tours, Paranormal
events and successful annual Halloween
Horror.
“ Each day is different, from litter picking,
emptying bins, cleaning the loos and keeping
the site clean and tidy. My other roles include
working with our maintenance team, and helping
to keep the fabric and structure in good order:
all jobs necessary so the general public have a
pleasant stay with us.
We have a great and dedicated team of
volunteers at the Fort, with back-up from our
trustees, general management and supervisors,
all of whom are there to advise and assist.
I enjoy my time with the Fort, and get a lot of
satisfaction helping to maintain part of our
history – as well as keeping active now I’ve
retired.
I’m looking forward to many more years
helping out!”
Make a Donation
As a charity we need your help to protect and maintain Fort Amherst and its Grounds.
Fort Amherst has stood for over 300 years but without ongoing care it would be lost to time
and the elements. You can support our valuable conservation work in many ways; you could
make a general donation, give in memory or leave a legacy.
Take your place in Fort Amherst’s story by helping to give our heritage a future.
For further information about how to donate, please contact the General Manager
by emailing
By donating, you can help protect the future of Fort Amherst's heritage. A ventilation system will help to remove the damp which plagues our Tunnels and Buildings. With this in place we will be able to install more collections throughout our buildings and improve the visitor experience for all.
By donating to this important appeal, your donation will help towards funding training courses for the development of our Volunteers and Staff; creating an even better experience for our visitors.
By donating, you’ll be providing funds for us to purchase these vital pieces of equipment to replace our ageingsaws! This will make a huge difference to our maintenance team who work tirelessly to help preserve Fort Amherst for the future.