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Intermediate Apprenticeship Animal Care and Welfare Assistant

Information for employers

Ensure your work provides the highest standards of animal care and welfare by developing the best standards of practice in your employees. Do this through apprenticeships: a cost-effective way to attract and train aspiring animal care and welfare assistants or retain experience in the animal care sector.

College student on a campus farm with a goat

Develop passionate, knowledgeable talent

Designed with employers, our Animal Care and Welfare Intermediate Apprenticeship balances theory with practical, real-time learning in the workplace. Apprentices develop a full range of knowledge, skills and behaviours to provide routine day-to-day care for domestic and/or wild animals under supervision, that you can trust.

Who is this apprenticeship for?

This apprenticeship will develop talent for a variety of job roles including kennel/cattery assistant, animal technician, animal welfare assistant, animal day care assistant, animal collection officer, wildlife rehabilitation assistant, pet retail assistant, animal handler, veterinary care assistant, zookeeper assistant, farm park assistant. You may wish to create a new role within your organisation to attract fresh talent or develop your existing staff.

Depending on the apprentice’s job role, there are two different pathways: Animal Care or the Veterinary Care Support route.

Capabilities to better your organisation

A cost-effective way to develop and retain talent

Employer co-investment/cost: the funding and employer contribution is determined by the age of the apprentice at the start of their course and the number of employees your company has. The Training Plan contract and Apprenticeship agreement you will sign with us will outline the course details, costs, terms and commitment of all parties.

To find out more about expected employer co-investments, please visit the key information section on our apprenticeships for employers page.

Our dedicated consultant can talk you through the detail.

Industry recognised professional accreditation

Lantra logo

Accredited by Lantra

Lantra works with a wide range of employers and apprenticeship training providers to provide essential levels of support and quality independent assessment of End Point Assessments (EPA) across many apprenticeships in the land-based sector.

Delivered by experts with delivery options to meet your organisation’s needs

Our Animal Care and Welfare Assistant Intermediate Apprenticeship is delivered through a blend of on-the-job training and on-campus learning activities from sector specialists and practitioners. The apprenticeship operates on a day-release model, with apprentices attending for one day a week during term time.

At least 20% of apprentices' contracted hours will be classed as ‘off the job’. This time will be dedicated to developing the knowledge and skills needed to meet the requirements of the apprenticeship, and therefore is not part of their usual work duties.

What are the entry requirements?

As an employer you set out the person specifications for the role, but the apprentice will need to meet our entry requirements to be accepted onto the course. You can view the full entry requirements on our course page.

Our dedicated consultants can talk you through the detail.

Visit the Animal Care and Welfare Assistant course page for full details

Helping you find the right apprentice

Apprentice watering plants in a greenhouse

Recruitment support

Our dedicated apprenticeship team is on hand to help you attract the best candidates for your organisation. We can help with:

  • Crafting job advertisements
  • Adding your vacancy to the National Apprenticeship Service ‘Find an Apprenticeship’ on your behalf
  • Sharing opportunities across our social media channels.

Our consultants will also be happy to support you in determining the suitability of the candidates you receive.

Next steps

If you'd like to know more about the apprenticeship, have a current employee in mind or are thinking of recruiting an apprentice for your organisation, our designated team of experts are here to support you at every step. Get in touch today.

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