Frances joined the Trimontium Trust as Volunteer Co-ordinator in February 2020 and is now our Violunteer and Visitor Experience Manager. Despite going into lockdown just a couple of weeks later and being unable to run volunteer events and activities, Frances has used her tourism experience to transform the administration of the Trust and its membership. Since re-opening Abbey House, she has been recruiting new volunteers, training and supporting them to bring history to a wider audience.
Frances believes in making sure that volunteering is a positive and enjoyable experience for all. Looking forward, she hopes to support Trimontium volunteers through learning new skills, getting to know the new museum, creating opportunities for sharing knowledge, working with schools to provide work experience for students, and ultimately setting in motion an ethos to ensure that future volunteers continue to benefit from their experience with the Trust.
As a postgraduate in Scottish Ethnology, Frances has worked most of her life in tourism and heritage in Scotland, striving to bring history to life for all. Having spent many years as a tour guide and guide trainer in Edinburgh, she has since written tours and trained staff for a variety of top tourism attractions in Scotland. Returning to her love of urban history, she has also worked as part of H.E.S Scotland’s Urban Past – a five year project to encourage recording of urban history and sites by local communities. Frances, although a Leither by birth, now lives in Lauder with her family and is delighted to be playing a part bringing the heritage of the Borders to life through the exciting work of the Trimontium Trust.