Aquarist

An exciting opportunity has arisen at Skegness Aquarium for an experienced Aquarist to join our passionate and busy team.

Skegness Aquarium is set in an interactive Treasure Island themed environment and is home to an interesting and varied collection of tropical marine, native marine, tropical freshwater and terrestrial species with scope to introduce new species and further develop or redesign displays in the future. As an Aquarist, you will play a vital role in maintaining the exhibits to the highest possible standards and ensuring that they surpass the expectations of our visitors, with animal welfare as the priority. You will also be encouraged to assist in coming up with exciting new ideas and concepts for our displays, improvements to husbandry and conservation work.

Key responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Maintaining the highest standards of animal welfare and striving to constantly make improvements while completing daily animal husbandry tasks.
• Observing animal behaviour and assisting with the ongoing health monitoring across the collection.
• Ensuring compliance with our site’s policies and protocols to ensure the highest standards of animal welfare.
• Delivering basic veterinary care & treatments under guidance from the Curator and vet.
• Daily maintenance of the aquatic and terrestrial life support systems.
• Ensuring signage and display information is kept up to date.
• Consistent daily record keeping of a high quality.
• Daily guest interpretation and interaction to encourage visitors to learn and develop a strong understanding of the natural world.

Essential requirements:

• A keen passion for aquatic ecosystems with particular focus on conservation initiatives.
• Minimum one years’ experience working within the aquarium industry but this can be voluntary experience.
• Experience of tropical marine aquatic husbandry and basic knowledge of aquarium life support systems.
• Proven ability to work under own initiative with high attention to detail but also a strong team player.
• Good communication skills and personable with respect for others within the workforce.
• Confidence speaking in public and interacting with visitors and school/youth groups.
• Excellent record keeping skills and some knowledge and understanding of the British zoo licensing procedure.
• Be able to relocate within 45 minutes of the aquarium and have suitable means of transport to ensure attendance is reliable.

Desirable requirements:

• Qualification/degree in marine biology, zoology or animal care (DMZAA accepted as a qualification here).
• Experience in providing basic veterinary treatments and care especially towards aquatic species.
• Be qualified as a minimum of PADI Rescue Diver (or equivalent), and be able to obtain a HSE Dive medical.
• Experience and knowledge of basic plumbing.
• Experience of involvement with the British zoo licensing procedure.
• Experience working with corals and terrestrial invertebrates, amphibians and reptiles.
• Experience developing conservation initiatives and/or training and enrichment programmes.
• Confident outlook and able to network with appropriate industry personnel and husbandry staff from other zoological collections.

This is a full-time position with a minimum of 40hrs per week for a competitive hourly rate currently due to rise to £11.02 per hour for the 2023 tax year after successfully passing minimum 3 month probation. This role includes working regular weekends, bank holidays and school holidays as per the rota as well as working sometimes early or late to meet business and animal care demands. Any overtime is paid at your hourly rate at the discretion of Teenspirit Ltd managers.

Benefits include a pension plan, 28 days holiday including substitute bank holidays and free entry or discounts at other Teenspirit Ltd. attractions. The right candidate will benefit from potential opportunities to attend conferences or receive paid industry related training at the discretion of Teenspirit Ltd senior management.

Closing date Monday 24th April 2023.

We encourage applicants to apply early as strong applicants will be invited to interview on receipt of their application, and therefore we may fill the position before the closing date.