Animal Care Assistant (Live-In)
A fantastic opportunity has arisen to join the National Animal Welfare Trust’s team at our Location Centre as a Live-In Animal Care Assistant.
You will be working for a charity that never stops caring for its animals and people. We believe every pet deserves a chance to thrive in a loving home. Across our five rescue and rehoming centres across the south of England, we care for homeless and unwanted cats, dogs, rabbits, and guinea pigs - helping them find the families they’ve been waiting for.
Location: NAWT Bedfordshire, Glebe Farm, Salford Road, Aspley Guise, Milton Keynes, MK17 8HZ
Hours: i.e. 40 hours per week, working weekends on a rota basis
Salary: (£12.71 per hour)
Closing Date: 30th August 2026
About the role:
You will have a vital role and will be responsible in providing high-quality daily care, handling, and enrichment for animals within our rehoming centre, supporting their physical and emotional wellbeing and contributing to their successful rehoming. You will work closely with a dedicated team to ensure the centre runs smoothly and maintains high welfare standards. As a Live-In Animal Care Assistant, you will have the additional responsibility of carrying out evening duties and lock up duties, as and when required.
Key Responsibilities:
- Animal Care & Welfare
- Feed, groom, and exercise animals according to individual care plans
- Clean enclosures, bedding, and feeding areas to a high hygienic standard
- Administer basic medical treatments under supervision (e.g. flea/worm treatments, medication)
- Monitor animal health and behaviour, reporting concerns promptly to senior staff
- Enrichment & Socialisation
- Provide mental and physical stimulation through play, training, and enrichment
- Help animals adjust to shelter life and prepare them for adoption such as lead walking, crate training and basic obedience
- Adoption & Rehoming Support
- Assist with introductions between potential adopters and animals
- Provide accurate and compassionate information to visitors and adopters
- Help maintain accurate records of animal care, behaviour, and medical needs
- Centre Operations
- Follow health & safety protocols at all times
- Maintain a clean and safe working environment for staff, volunteers, and visitors
o Support fundraising, events, or outreach initiatives as needed
Person Specification:
Essential:
- Genuine passion for animal welfare, rescue and rehoming work
- Experience handling animals (personal or professional)
- Good communication skills and a team-player mindset with ability to work on your own initiative
- Manual working tasks
- Willingness to work weekends and public holidays on a rota basis
Desirable:
- Previous work or volunteering experience in a kennel, cattery, or shelter
- Qualification in animal care or welfare (e.g. Level 2/3 Animal Care)
- Familiarity with animal behaviour and basic training techniques
Working Conditions:
- Outdoor and indoor work in all weather conditions
- Hands-on animal handling, including cleaning, feeding and lead walking a wide variety of dog breeds
- Uniform is provided
- Empathy and emotional resilience when dealing with sometimes challenging circumstances, such as animals in distress and potential euthanasia cases
So, if you are the kind of person who enjoys a busy and varied role, with an empathy for the aims of NAWT, and would relish the opportunity to gain lots of experience within animal welfare – this may be the job for you!
As part of our commitment to making NAWT a great place to work, we offer access to the following employee benefits:
· 33 days annual leave inclusive of bank holidays rising to 38 days after 5 years of service (pro-rated for part time employees)
· Group Life Assurance Scheme
· Contributory Pension Scheme
· Employee Assistance Programme and access to Wellbeing Resources.
We are an inclusive organisation and are committed to providing equality of opportunity for all with the right mix of talent, skills and potential. We welcome all applications from the communities we work in. Selection for roles will be based on individual merit.
The full Job Description can be viewed on our website: https://www.nawt.org.uk/get-involved/working-with-us/
If you feel you have the right skills to be a successful Live-In Animal Care Assistant at our Bedfordshire Centre, please send your CV with your cover letter outlining how your experience and interest connect to our position.
Please note we are accepting applications on a rolling basis and may close the recruitment process for this role prior to the deadline, so early applications are encouraged. Unfortunately, we are only able to make contact with those applicants who will be invited to interview.
Job Types: Full-time, Permanent
Pay: £12.71 per hour
Licence/Certification:
- Driving Licence (required)
Work Location: In person
