UX and Accessible Web Design Volunteer

What will you be doing?

Free UK Genealogy provides free online access to family history records through FreeBMD, FreeREG and FreeCEN, helping people explore their personal and community histories without paywalls.

We are looking for a volunteer who can help us make our websites and digital materials clearer, more consistent and easier to use. This role would suit someone with an interest in user experience, accessible web design and practical design improvements. You might have professional experience, voluntary experience, study-based experience, or a strong portfolio of thoughtful design work.

The role could include:

• reviewing pages, forms and user journeys across our websites
• helping us identify where users may struggle, hesitate or lose their way
• supporting simple, accessible improvements to layout, wording and design consistency
• helping with journey mapping, light-touch user research or volunteer/user feedback
• creating or refining wireframes, page layouts or design suggestions
• helping us use visual material more effectively, for example diagrams, maps, graphs, screenshots or simple illustrations
• contributing to design thinking for current and emerging projects, including FreeBMD2, FreePRO and our volunteer community hub
• helping us make some organisational materials, such as reports or web pages, more engaging without losing clarity or trustworthiness

You would not be expected to do everything at once. We have several live projects, so the role can evolve around your interests, availability and the areas where your contribution is most useful.

What are we looking for?

We are looking for someone who thinks carefully about people, not just pages. You do not need to be an expert in genealogy, although an interest in family history, archives or public access to records would be very welcome.

You may be a good fit if you have experience and an interest in:

• UX, UI or accessible web design
• user journeys, personas, wireframes or service mapping
• user research, usability testing or analysing feedback
• designing clear and consistent layouts for websites or digital materials
• making complex information easier to understand
• using tools such as Figma, Canva, Miro, Google Workspace or similar
• working with volunteers, charities, community groups or public-interest projects

We would especially value someone who is curious and pragmatic. We do not need someone to arrive with a grand redesign. We need someone who can listen well, ask useful questions, notice where things are not quite working, and help us make steady improvements.

A thoughtful approach to accessibility is important. So is respect for the scholarly nature of our work: our websites depend on accuracy, clarity and trust. The best design for us will support that, making our records and guidance easier to use without oversimplifying what they mean.

What difference will you make?

Our websites are used by family historians, local historians, researchers and curious members of the public. Many of our users are experienced genealogists, but others arrive with very little knowledge of how civil registration, parish registers or census records work. Clear design matters because it helps people find records, understand what they are seeing, and continue their research with confidence.

This role will help us make better use of the work already done by our volunteers. Free UK Genealogy has a large body of data, knowledge and practical experience, but we need to present it in ways that feel coherent, accessible and easy to navigate.

Good UX and design support would help us:

• make our websites more consistent across projects
• reduce frustration for users completing searches or reading guidance
• improve accessibility and readability
• turn ideas from volunteers, staff and trustees into practical improvements
• present data, progress and impact more clearly
• support new projects with a stronger design foundation from the outset

Your work would have a visible effect on how people experience Free UK Genealogy. It would also help our volunteer-led teams make more confident design decisions, especially where small changes could make a real difference.