Aquarist

Merlin Entertainments Group; Scarborough; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 29,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a leading company in marine conservation as an Aquarist at SEA LIFE Great Scarborough. Your role includes a mix of animal care, system maintenance, and engaging with an array of marine life, with potential career progression within a broad network of attractions. Enjoy a competitive salary, numerous employee perks, and be part of a dedicated team making a difference in animal welfare.

Benefits

40% off LEGO online

25% discount in retail and restaurants

Free tickets to attractions worldwide

Discounted rates at Merlin hotels

Employee pricing up to 55% off cinema tickets

Qualifications

• Experience within public aquariums.
• Skills in maintenance and life support systems.
• Demonstrable experience with freshwater and marine animals.

Responsibilities

• Care for animals and maintain high animal health standards.
• Operate and maintain filtration and life support systems.
• Provide medication and treatment to animals.

Skills

Animal husbandry

Animal training

Plumbing

Life support systems operation

Education

Degree in animal care or marine biology

Job description

What you'll bring to the team

Do you dream of working alongside majestic sharks, playful penguins or our cheeky seals? If you’re a dedicated aquarist, SEA LIFE Great Scarborough offers a varied workload. Whether that’s creating enrichment or rescuing injured seal pups from our local coasts. We’re home to Yorkshire’s only seal hospital, and work closely with national animal charities and other rehabilitation sites across the UK.

We have a structured progression plan for our display teams in place across the UK, which means we can now offer a role between levels 1 and 5 and will be compensated accordingly. Successful performance can lead to you becoming a Displays Supervisor and with so many sites across the world, the opportunities are endless.

You’ll play a vital part in caring for our animals, ensuring consistently high levels of animal health and welfare as well as looking after and carrying out routine maintenance of the filtration and life support systems, crisis management equipment and environmental alarms. Other duties include back washing main filters, water changes, water quality checks, water parameters, health checks, plus training and enrichment.

You’ll prepare suitable diets and feed all livestock, as well as provide medication and treatment of animals under direction. You will also provide 24-hour alarm cover on a rota basis and maintain strict codes of practice for the use, storage and record keeping of all medications and chemicals according to HSE, COSHH and SSSMZP regulations.

This is a full-time, permanent role, working any 5 days out of 7. This will include weekends and bank holidays on a roster basis.

Qualifications & Experience

• Experience within public aquariums involving maintenance, plumbing and operation of life support systems.
• Demonstrable experience of animal husbandry with freshwater, marine animals, and amphibians.
• Skills in animal training and enrichment.
• A degree level qualification in animal care, marine biology or equivalent (not essential).

Benefits

Alongside becoming an expert in washing up, you’ll also receive:

• Salary between £25,991 (level 1) to £28,391 (level 5) per annum, depending on experience.
• 40% off LEGO online.
• 25% discount in our retail shops and restaurants.
• Merlin Magic Pass - giving you free tickets to all our attractions worldwide for you, your family, and friends every year.
• Enjoy the Ride Pass – giving you and 5 others a Merlin Annual Pass (Gold edition).
• Discounted rates at Merlin hotels all over the world.
• Employee pricing up to 55% off cinema tickets.

If you have any questions or if you require any assistance, because of a disability, medical condition, or being a care leaver, please contact us by email at [e-mail] and one of the team will get back to you as soon as possible.

Pay Range

From GBP £25,991.00/Yr.