Job opportunities

Marine Senior Aquarist

Full time Aquarist with background in aquatic retail/ public aquarium/ private keeping required for hotel with exclusive and diverse array of rare tropical marine, coral and freshwater tanks.

The ideal candidate will have a background in maintaining a wide range of life support systems and equipment, and be competent in completing all tank maintenance tasks to a meticulously high standard along with daily water testing and associated record keeping. 

Skills required include the ability to effectively time manage, self motivate and problem solve, these key skills along with a strong work ethic and genuine care for marine life, is of primary importance. Formal qualifications are secondary to industry experience, dive qualifications are advantageous as weekly snorkel work is required in some of the displays. 

In return we offer a competitive salary, annual discretionary performance based bonus, workplace gym access, regular CPD training from industry and veterinary experts, along with a commitment to continually developing our employees. Internal development programme also in place, and room for progression into senior/supervisory roles. 

Weekend work is required, on a 3 on, 1 off basis. 45 hour working week, 10 hours per day, with 1 hour paid lunch break per day. Work hours can vary pending winter/summer requirements.

Responsibilities

• Overseeing the accurate preparation of all diets for all animals on the aquatics section, including ensuring correct and timely administration of any medications or supplements that may be given within these.
• Ensuring the daily feeding regime of all animals, including monitoring body condition fluctuations, reporting any changes to the Aquatics Supervisor. Ensuring twice daily visual health checking of Animals within the section, taking necessary action where needed and reporting of any anomalies to the Aquatics Supervisor on an immediate basis.
• Ensuring you uphold high standards of cleaning and aquatic maintenance, disinfection of equipment & other related cleaning tasks are carried out accurately & diligently.
• Maintaining records and relevant data into the section logbooks and uploading this date to the Animal Care Database on a periodic basis to include but not limited to, water quality, condition of animals, food intake, training programmes.
• Ensuring fish always have high quality water parameters which are closely monitored and recorded.
• Awareness of the safety of all animals within the aquatics department, monitoring environments to ensure they are kept safe and suitable, and subsequent.
• Ensuring your full compliance with all issued SOP’s & RA's.
• Working between sites as required.
• Ensuring excellent presentation of the aquariums, enclosures and aquatic animals, meeting the collections high standards.
• Giving great interactions with the owners of the collection through site tours, answering any questions they may have and implementing any structural or husbandry changes they see fit.
• Training and oversight of junior staff when working within your section.
• Arranging veterinary treatment where needed, including reporting of any sick animals to the Aquatics Supervisor, administering medications as per veterinary professionals’/Supervisor's instructions.
• Learning to provide accurate information to supervisory colleagues for the submission of AHEF requests.
• Checking the security and safety of the area you are working within and reporting any damage or repairs required to the Aquatics Supervisor.
• Maintaining of animal equipment as instructed by your line manager, inclusive of daily use equipment, regular checking of the areas handling equipment and PPE.
• Ensuring your workspaces within the department and site are always kept clean, presentable, and reporting of low stocks to the Aquatics Supervisor.
• Reporting of any H&S incidents or near misses in the accident book and any other issues that could affect yourself or your colleagues safety at work to the overall Manager in a timely manner.
• Checking security and safety of all areas within your section, ensuring all areas are secured at all times un-manned and any suspicious activity or unusual circumstances are reported immediately to Security and the shift Supervisor for your department.
• Any extra research or projects your supervisor requires you to undertake to enable you to care for new or unknown animals or to enable you to undertake specific client or managerial requests (i.e. breeding, hand-rearing of young, other special projects allocated to your section).
• Hold a valid UK driving license and own a car that you are willing to partake in driving tasks as/when required, this can be moving staff to sites and doing vet runs, this is paid mileage and business insurance must be undertaken (at the company’s expense).
• Some snorkel cleans in exhibits
• Keeping work fleet buggies and vehicles presentable, including washing after every use, and reporting any maintenance issues through the relevant channels.
• Any other reasonable request your supervisor or the Animal Kingdom Manager makes.
• Driving of work vehicles as required
• Ensuring any guest areas you work within are left in the same condition you found them in, not leaving any equipment out if not present.
• Assisting with new designs and builds within the Aquatics department, reviewing proposals and ensuring they meet the needs of our clients and animals.
• reporting of any maintenance of filtration systems and other work that must be completed externally to the Aquatics Supervisor.
• Assistance within other departments of the site, if required.
• Any other reasonable request your manager makes.

The working premesis is in Slough, Buckinghamshire, you must be able to relocate or live within a commutable distance.

This is a senior role, mandatory strong knowledge of Coral, Fish and Life support workings and management is essential. 

A flexible approach is sometimes required due to the nature of Animal keeping.