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L3Apprenticeship4921 approved provider
The Level 3 Keeper And Aquarist, and the 1 provider delivering it.
Responsible for the everyday care and husbandry of the animals within the collection.
About this apprenticeship
What this apprenticeship covers
Apprentices learn the day-to-day husbandry and welfare of animals held in licensed zoological collections. This includes reading and applying diet sheets, preparing feeds, cleaning and maintaining enclosures, and monitoring animal behaviour and health. Apprentices also study species-specific natural history to inform habitat design and routine management, use recording systems such as ZIMS to log observations, and understand the legal and professional frameworks governing animal welfare, transportation, and workplace safety.
Day-to-day responsibilities
A typical week involves preparing and delivering feeds, cleaning enclosures, and checking habitats for hazards. Apprentices observe animals closely, noting any changes in behaviour or condition and reporting concerns to senior keepers or veterinary staff. They also engage directly with visitors, tailoring information about species, conservation, and animal characteristics to different audiences. Depending on the size of the collection, work may be largely independent or as part of a wider keeping team. Unsociable hours and outdoor work in all weather are both common.
Career outlook
Completing this apprenticeship opens roles as a zoo keeper, aquarist, or animal keeper across zoos, wildlife parks, aquariums, private collections, and farm parks holding zoo licences. With experience, keepers can progress to senior keeper, head keeper, or collection management roles. Some move into conservation programmes, breeding coordination, or education and outreach work. Employers range from large national zoos to smaller regional wildlife centres, and opportunities exist across the UK and internationally for those seeking to build a long-term career in animal management.
1 approved provider
Sorted by achievement rate.
City of London Corporation
The City of London Corporation delivers apprenticeships and adult learning through its Adult Skills ...
Career outcomes
Roles after completion
Completers typically move into substantive Zoo Keeper or Aquarist positions, taking on direct responsibility for a designated section or species collection. Some step into Animal Keeper roles with broader remit across mixed collections. Day-to-day work at this level involves independent husbandry decisions, visitor engagement, enclosure management, and contributing to health and welfare reporting, often with oversight of volunteers or less experienced staff.
Progression paths
With three to five years of post-qualification experience, keepers commonly progress to Senior Keeper or Section Leader, taking charge of a specific taxonomic group such as primates, large cats, birds, or marine species. Beyond that, the leadership track leads to Head Keeper, Curator of Animals, or Collections Manager. Alternatively, specialists move deeper into a single discipline, such as animal training, conservation breeding coordination, or aquatic systems management, sometimes taking on roles with regional or national conservation programmes.
Where these roles sit
Employers are predominantly zoological and aquatic collections: accredited zoos, safari parks, aquariums, and wildlife parks across the UK, ranging from large institutions with extensive collections to smaller specialist sites. Animal reserves and licensed private collections also recruit at this level. The sector spans public and charitable operators, and some roles sit within organisations affiliated with international conservation bodies such as BIAZA or EAZA.
How it's assessed
How the apprenticeship is assessed
Throughout the apprenticeship, learning takes place on the job in a zoo, aquarium, wildlife park or licensed collection. The apprentice builds practical competence in animal husbandry, welfare monitoring, enclosure management and visitor engagement while carrying out real daily duties. Before moving to final assessment, a gateway review confirms the apprentice and their employer are satisfied the required knowledge, skills and behaviours have been met. Final assessment then confirms the apprentice is occupationally competent. Assessment arrangements for many standards are currently being revised by Skills England, so check the standard's gov.uk page for the current specification before enrolling.
What learners need to prepare
Keeping records throughout the apprenticeship is important, rather than trying to gather evidence at the end. Learners should document their work with different species, their observations of animal behaviour and health, enclosure tasks, and any visitor engagement or educational presentations they deliver. Working closely with the employer and training provider to review progress regularly helps identify any gaps in knowledge or practical skills well before the gateway review. Good record keeping from day one makes the final readiness check considerably more straightforward.
Choosing a provider
What good looks like
Look for providers with direct, established links to accredited zoological collections, wildlife parks or aquariums, not just general animal care centres. On the FATP profile, an achievement rate above 65% is a reasonable baseline for this standard; above 75% suggests the provider is managing the practical demands of the programme well. Employer satisfaction scores matter here because the day-to-day learning happens on-site with animals. Check learner reviews for comments on how well off-the-job training connects to real husbandry work, and whether the provider has supported apprentices using ZIMS or equivalent collection management systems.
Red flags to watch for
Be cautious if a provider's apprentice satisfaction scores are low but learner volumes are high. For this standard, that often signals thin off-the-job support rather than genuine hands-on development. Providers who cannot clearly explain how they cover species-specific behaviour, welfare legislation, or conservation education within the programme are worth pushing harder. If a provider is vague about how they assess animal handling competence or cannot point to alumni now working as keepers or aquarists, treat that as a significant gap. Generic animal care delivery that isn't tailored to zoological collections is unlikely to prepare apprentices adequately.
Questions to ask before you commit
- Which zoological collections or aquariums have your previous apprentices trained with, and where are they working now?
- How does the programme cover ZIMS or other collection management recording systems used in professional zoo settings?
- What off-the-job training do you provide, and how does it connect to species-specific husbandry rather than general animal care?
- How do you assess competence in areas like animal behaviour observation, enclosure hazard checks and visitor engagement?
- Can you show us your current achievement rate for this standard and explain any significant changes over the last two years?
- How do you support apprentices who work unsociable hours or are based at smaller collections with less day-to-day supervision?
- How is conservation education and public engagement covered within the programme assessment?
Common questions
What qualifications or experience do I need to start a Keeper and Aquarist apprenticeship?
There are no nationally fixed entry requirements, so employers set their own. Most will expect a genuine interest in animal care and conservation, and some prior hands-on experience with animals, whether through volunteering, work experience at a zoo or aquarium, or farm work, is often valued. A basic level of numeracy and literacy is needed to interpret diet sheets, maintain records, and communicate with colleagues and the public. Check individual provider requirements before applying.
How long does the apprenticeship take and how is the time split between work and learning?
The typical duration is 24 months, though this can vary depending on prior experience and the employer. Throughout the apprenticeship you are employed full time, carrying out the keeper or aquarist role while working towards the standard. A portion of your contracted hours is set aside for off-the-job learning. The current requirements for duration and off-the-job time are subject to revision under ongoing Skills England reforms, so check the gov.uk apprenticeship standard page for the most up-to-date specification.
How is the apprenticeship assessed?
Before the end-point assessment, the apprentice must pass through a gateway, at which point the employer, training provider and apprentice confirm that the required knowledge, skills and behaviours have been demonstrated. Assessment models for many standards are currently being reviewed under Skills England reforms, so the specific end-point assessment methods may change. For the current assessment plan, refer to the gov.uk page for this standard. In general, the apprentice must show genuine competence in animal husbandry, welfare, record-keeping and public engagement.
How does an employer fund this apprenticeship?
The funding band for this standard is £7,000, which is the maximum that can be drawn from government funding towards training and assessment costs. Levy-paying employers use their digital apprenticeship service account to pay providers directly. Non-levy-paying employers, typically SMEs, co-invest with the government, contributing 5% of the training cost while the government pays the remaining 95%. Employers with fewer than 50 employees who take on an apprentice aged 16 to 18 pay nothing; the government covers the full cost.
What does a Keeper or Aquarist apprentice actually do from day to day?
Day-to-day work includes preparing and delivering feeds from diet sheets, cleaning and maintaining animal enclosures, monitoring animal behaviour and health, and logging observations in record systems such as ZIMS. Apprentices also check for hazards, assist with enclosure design and maintenance, and engage with visitors by explaining animal characteristics and supporting conservation education. The role often involves early starts, weekend shifts, and working outdoors in all weather. In smaller collections, an apprentice may manage a section largely independently; in larger ones, they work within a team.
What can a Keeper or Aquarist apprentice do after completing the programme?
Completing this apprenticeship leads to the job titles of zoo keeper, aquarist, or animal keeper. From there, progression typically moves towards senior keeper or team leader roles, with some moving into specialist areas such as veterinary nursing, conservation management, or education and outreach. Further qualifications in animal science, conservation biology, or zoology are available at higher levels, and some employers support continued study. The apprenticeship provides a foundation recognised across UK zoological collections, wildlife parks, and aquariums.
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Curated by Alex Lockey, FATP founder and editor. Last reviewed: .
Sources include the apprenticeship's official specification on apprenticeships.gov.uk, Skills England guidance, IfATE archive records, DWP funding bands, and provider data sourced directly from the public Apprenticeship Provider and Assessment Register (APAR). Standard reference: 492.
Some sections on this page were drafted with AI assistance from published source data and reviewed by a human editor before publication. See our editorial methodology for how we maintain this content. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.