Volunteering

Animal Ambassadors

We are currently recruiting for this voluntary role

The Animal Ambassador programme is a public-facing role sharing our work in animal care and conservation. You’ll engage visitors through conversations, props, and pop-up activities that help bring the Zoo to life.

Animal Ambassadors don’t need prior animal knowledge – this will be provided along with training and activity guidance. However, we are looking for volunteers who already feel confident starting conversations with visitors.

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What you’ll do:

• Engage with visitors of all ages in an informal setting
• Use props (such as skulls, feathers, and cuddly toys) to create learning moments
• Share information about our animals, conservation work, and the Zoo as a whole
• Support pop-up engagement stations and activities
• Answer visitor questions, including helping with wayfinding
• Follow a daily schedule as part of a team of volunteers

What to expect:

• A full day commitment each duty day (10am–3pm in winter and 10am–4pm in summer)
• Being outside in all weather; volunteers have indoor locations but travel between these is outdoors
• Varied visitor numbers, from quiet days to very busy peak periods
• Standing and walking for periods around a hilly outdoor site
• A dynamic environment with different volunteers on different days
• Busy, noisy conditions during peak times
• Flexibility and adaptability are important, as no two shifts are the same

Who we’re looking for:

• Minimum age of 17+
• Available regularily with a long-term commitment to the programme
• Friendly, approachable, and confident with people
• Comfortable starting conversations with visitors
• Organised and reliable
• Able to work both independently and as part of a team
• Experience in teaching, presenting, guiding, or customer-facing roles is beneficial but not essential
• Interest in animals or conservation is a bonus (experience not essential)

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How to Become an Animal Ambassador:

To be considered for this, please email education@colchesterzoo.org who will send through our Application Questions.
Whilst we would love nothing more than to accept every individual that applies to our programme, we are limited in the number of new volunteers we can currently support. Acceptance into the program is competitive and we encourage all prospective volunteers to thoroughly answer each question when they are sent through.