Job opportunities

Education Manager

Northumberland Zoo is a major animal attraction in the North East of England. With the addition of  numerous brand-new exhibits in the past few years, including our highly recognised critically endangered Livingstone’s fruit bat enclosure, our future is looking bright with ambitious plans for growth. We are a family-run, not-for-profit zoo and we are looking for a like-minded team player to join our team; you must be willing to adopt our Zoo ethos and join our mission in conservation & sustainability education to inspire positive change.

Conservation and education are at the heart of our Zoo. We are very driven and determined to become the leading zoological collection in our area and are ideally placed to be the wildlife education hub for the Northeast. Being not-for-profit means that every penny we earn goes straight back into our developments. Plus, with conservation partnerships, such as the Environment Agency, Northumberland Rivers Trust as well as the Wildlife Trust, we are paving the way for native species conservation in this area.

Alongside our growing animal collection, we have ambitious plans to develop our conservation education facilities,  including a brand new education and events centre for 2025/26. This along with our current indoor animal display area, the Wild Theatre, as well as numerous outside learning areas will provide a fantastic opportunity for conservation education at Northumberland Zoo.

An exciting opportunity has come up for an Education Manager to take our education programme to the next level. In this role you will be required to be a front runner in the development of and oversee all conservation education activities, so will need to be able to manage and prioritise a diverse workload and have good problem-solving skills. You will plan, create and implement strategies for education, whilst delivering a high standard of learning to a wide range of audience members.

Within our Education Policy, we are aiming to change the knowledge, attitudes and behaviours of the public to ensure that everyone shares the same message of sustainability and conservation.  We follow the national curriculum for science and work with educators to ensure our workshops meet curricular aims including SEND provision.

Main Duties & Job Responsibilities

·         Adapting and following our education strategy that is in-line with our zoo’s mission and education curricular aims

·         Designing planning and delivering education activities to a range of audiences matching lesson objectives and plans to curricular aims, liaising with Teachers and adapting as required

·         Designing and creating bespoke high-quality resources that are aligned to the learning outcomes for the school/organisation

·         Liaison with teachers providing advice and guidance on workshop content pricing structure and timetable for their visit

·         Responsible for all education administration (invoices, tracking metrics, payments, visit and student numbers) as well as evaluation of education programmes

·         Meeting and greeting schools on arrival and being the key point of contact during the day of their visit.

·         Communicating with and developing relationships with educators in the region

·         Maintaining the education facilities

·         Assisting with the management the volunteer programme alongside the animal team

·         Strict adherence to risk assessments, bio security, safe working practices and maintain up to date knowledge of safeguarding

·         Annual CPD to include keeping up to date with policies, curriculum changes and BIAZA regional education activities

·         Representing the zoo during all educational activities and external conferences

Skills & Experience

·         At least 3 years experience of working with and supporting children in an education capacity

·         At least 4 years of professional education work experience, working within a zoo environment would be advantageous

·         Be qualified in an appropriate education or zoo related discipline

·         Must be confident and approachable when communicating with people and have excellent  presentation skills for a variety of audiences

·         Excellent planning skills and the ability to manage and be flexible with a variety of work

·         An enthusiastic and driven approach to conservation education with a keen interest and strong understanding of wildlife conservation, biodiversity and sustainability

·         Be IT literate and have the ability to organise, prioritise and develop education programmes

·         Ability to obtain a DBS check

·         Full driving license and access to a vehicle is a must due to the rural setting of the zoo

 

General  & Benefits

·         Salary up to £28,500pa

·         40 hrs per week across 5 days (Monday – Friday) May include some weekend and bank holiday hours

·         28 days holiday per annum (includes Bank Holidays) increasing by 1 annually to a maximum of 33 days after 5 years

·         Sick pay allowance of 1 week, after 12 months service

·         Complimentary Zoo admission tickets for family and friends

·         Pension scheme

·         Discounted food and Zoo products