The visitor attraction at the top of the Shard at London Bridge is seeking to hire 60 'guest ambassadors' as it prepares to welcome its first paying customers on 1 February 2013.

Image courtesy of The View from The Shard

The staff will work in the ticketing area, 'departure lounge' and souvenir shop at street level. They will also act as guides in the viewing galleries on levels 68 to 72, helping visitors to appreciate and explore London's cityscape and operate the attraction's digital telescopes.

Tickets for The View from The Shard are priced at £29.95 with a £5 discount for advance booking.

The guest ambassador salary of up to £16,500 a year for a 42-hour week equates to just under £8 an hour, short of the City Hall-endorsed London Living Wage of £8.30 an hour.

Prospective applicants are warned that they need to have a head for heights and be prepared to work at high altitude.

The attraction's managers say they particularly welcome applications from Southwark residents who can take advantage of free pre-employment training courses run in collaboration with Southwark College and START.

The two-day course provides an introduction to the job and the employer, and offers assistance with application forms and interviews. More details are available from the London Bridge JobCentre Plus.

"The View from The Shard is a premium visitor experience, offering access to the most spectacular views of London, enhanced by state of the art technology, all enjoyed queue and crowd free," says Sandy Clark, operations director of the attraction.

"Our ambition is to ensure that our visitors have the best possible experience with us and our team of guest ambassadors will play a huge part in achieving this.

"We're seeking people passionate about London, its people and its history. This is a unique opportunity to engage with visitors from all over the world and help them enjoy this great city like never before."

Applications are invited for full time or part time positions, with negotiable working patterns. Contracts will begin in late November or early December.

• Details of the guest ambassdor vacancies are available at www.theviewfromtheshard.com and the closing date is Sunday 23 September.

• Telephone bookings and enquiries for the Shard visitor attraction will be answered by a call centre in Norwich.