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Animal Care Courses at DCG

If you’re passionate about pursuing a career working with animals – from house pets to farm livestock, zoo animals to wildlife – you’ve come to the right place. DCG delivers the in-depth knowledge, skills training and practical experience that will help you into a wide range of animal-related jobs.

You might be keen to work in an animal rescue centre, kennels, cattery, vet surgery or zoo. You might imagine specialising in animal behaviour, training police dogs or becoming an RSPCA inspector. Wherever your aspirations lie, you’ll find that DCG has a thorough understanding of what employers expect – and will help turn your ambitions into reality.

Broomfield Hall is no conventional classroom. You’ll study surrounded by farm animals, exotic species, rare breeds and wildlife – from donkeys, pigs, meerkats and wallabies to snakes, spiders and porcupines. No two days are ever the same in our Animal Centre as you gain hands-on experience in caring for, rehabilitating, handling, feeding, housing and training different species.

Our courses span everything from nationally recognised diplomas to part-time qualifications in areas like canine first aid. We also support Animal Care apprenticeships and you can even progress to our specialist Foundation and BSc (Hons) Degrees.

hello everyone welcome to the Darby

college group virtual information event

I’m here to talk to you about our animal

care courses here at Darby college but

I’ll give you a bit of background

knowledge first so you can get to know

Broomfield hole also it’ll put lots of

things into perspective for you

so we’re made up of four campuses

including Broomfield hall where your

studies will take place we also have the

Roundhouse Joseph Wright Center Ilkeston

and all together these make the Darby

College Group which is also known as DCG

we have a multitude of support areas

available to every student here at Darby

College from the moment we meet you

right up until you have completed your

study program and are deciding on your

next steps whether you still need to

gain english maths GCSE x’ or if you are

looking for top quality work experience

to help gain valuable industry knowledge

we will offer you tailored support to

suit your individual needs right from

first contact we will ensure that the

right study pathway matches your career

aspirations and also our team are made

up of industry experienced professionals

who will help you develop the skills and

qualities that employers are looking for

we are full of information advice and

guidance to help you with your student

experience and to help you decide on

your next step

we have teamed with career coach which

is designed to help you find a good

career by providing the most current

local data on wages

employment job postings and associated

education and training head over to the

Career and courses section of our

website and select career coach from

here you can easily browse or search for

the available courses at Derby college

and it will lead you to the career that

you want you can also take career

assessments on career coaches to learn

about yourself and then it will give you

career suggestions based on your

interests all free of charge of course

and as you can see from the animal care

industry it is projected employment

count for the animal care services and

related occupations in the Darby region

is predicted to keep rising each year

from now through to 2028 and here are a

few of the top posted job titles over

the past year for this industry and

their dog groomers groomers animal

keepers animal care assistants and

animal laboratory technicians what I

want to quickly do is show you the

animal management department that we

have here at Broomfield which is very

much like a miniature zoo which is

absolutely amazing what I’m going to do

now is I’m going to show you around

each room briefly so you can see what

animals we have for you to work with we

have a commercially rouen grooming salon

that our level 3 learners work in and

that is our level 3 second-year students

they have a fantastic opportunity to

work with dogs and other animals to

groom learn how to use clippers how to

use scissors and we have a fantastic

groomer that supports you with that all

the way we have farm animals on the farm

and also on our animal unit the farm

house is a wide range of animals

including rare breed pigs cows and

calves and sheep and if you are looking

in the Easter period you

can take part in lambing also and down

on the animal unit we have a range of

goats and alpacas donkeys and poultry

for you to work with and we have the

exotics room and the extended exotics

room here are just a few pictures to

show the variety of animals we have

within them as you can see we have got a

variety of tarantulas a multitude of

different tortoises and Terrapins we

have got bugs beetles and millipedes

African giant ants nails there we’ve

also got a huge variety of snakes

including royal pythons Beauty snakes

corn snakes rainbow Boas we’ve also got

a few different types of lizards here is

the bearded dragon we’ve got uromastyx

also the leopard gecko that you can see

there we also have crested geckos on

site – which are lovely em in our

extended exotic room we have got large

enclosures that are beautifully built by

our technicians on site and they are for

our larger exotic species such as our

monitor lizards so there is a lovely

room to watch out for when you start

with us we have our mammal house which

captures our mammals so if I start with

the first picture here this is Albus he

is a skunk he is Alby no he lives in the

mammal house alongside many different

guinea pigs and many different rabbits

and chinchillas we have lots of

different types of enclosures for the

different animals so you can see how

they will live out their lives in

different ways fur and feather room here

going through the pictures on the top

left starting is our ferrets then we’ve

got lots of different rabbits and

different colors we have also got

hedgehogs that we take in from Te

winkles and we bring them back to health

and release on to Bloomfield College

lund we’ve also got squirrels

Prospero’s and also different guinea

pigs as well

our rodent and aquatics room holds yes

you’ve guessed it lots of different

rodents and aquatics we have rats mice

hamsters daegu’s with a huge variety of

aquatics and we have a marine aquatics

specialist on site as well so if you

want to pick his brains he will be

willing we also have a variety of zoo

animals and as you can see they’re

starting at the left you have got a

Wallabies we have got two of them we

have got a beautifully built in closure

for our mixed exhibit which is for

meerkats and two porcupines why study

animal care well the Animal Care cost

could lead onto variety in range of

careers just a few to talk about is

zookeeper a veterinary nurse it doesn’t

tend to be vet but that’s not always the

case we have had some exceptional

students go on to be a vet to Animal

Care and silly dog wardens for the

council pet store assistants can like

hatchery workers animal rescue workers

dog groomers farm workers and many more

and I have been teaching on the animal

care course now for 12 years and it is

surprising the career paths that the

students can go on to there is many

working in zoos now training the zoo

animals we also have some in South

Africa working it is a real pleasure to

see them students progress on to them

sort of careers so let’s talk about the

different levels we have here at

Broomfield college to offer you in the

animal care so the first one is level

one so in level one you will study

animal health and well-being Health and

Safety developing personal performance

animals in the wild and society animal

feeding and watering animal

accommodation animal behavior and hand

students will also study functional

skills in English and maths this is it

mandatory and if you have just missed

out on them GCSEs we can also allow you

to resit your English and maths GCSEs –

so the entry requirements for level one

is one eighth grade in English we

require you to join us at college for

three days a week you will have work

placement which means you will find a

place that you would like to work and

you will work with our work experience

coordinator to support you with

organizing the placement where you will

go for two weeks that we give you off in

college time and work to build your CV

and to also to allow you to progress on

to the level 2 diploma so you can

progress on to the level 2 diploma in

animal management with a merit or you

can go on to an apprenticeship so if you

are planning to work through our levels

here at Animal Care you need to make

sure you are working extremely hard to

make sure you will get in that merit

overall so you can progress on to the

level 2 for your next step the next

level is level 2 and the modules that

you will study whilst being with us here

at there’ll be college on the level 2 is

behaviour in handling feeding and

watering animal accommodation health and

welfare animal behavior British wildlife

and also work experience yet again you

will have to study functional skills or

GCSEs in English Maths if you have not

got that C in English or math this is

mandatory and you will have that put

onto your tone table as well as your

animal modules to study on the level 2

course you can progress from level 1

ensuring that you’ve got that merit

overall and the entry requirements is to

DS or grade threes in English language

and science and to ease so grade 2 in

maths and another subject this is a

one year course and days of attendance

is dependent on them maths and English

requirements coursework is assessed so

there is lots of different ways that we

assess you these can be posters written

assignments in class tests fact sheets

presentations the list goes on and you

can also progress on to the level 3 with

a distinction or on to an apprenticeship

so with all of these assessments there

is a lovely percentage that you will be

doing practically as well so you will

have lots of practical skills assessed

as well as your written skills on the

level 2 diploma our next level here at

Animal Care is level 3 which is also

called an advanced technical diploma in

animal management the entry requirements

for this particular level is 4 GCSEs at

grade C or grade 4 or above to include

biology English language maths and one

other academic subject our level 3

course is the equivalent to 3 a levels

and progression on to degree courses it

is a 2 year course so you will study

with this here at Brimfield for both

years and attendance is minimum of 3

days a week with 2 days personal study

so that’s not 3 days a week and working

for two days that’s three days a week

and working on your college course for

two days a week at home these particular

modules are coursework and exam assessed

the modules that you’ll be studying here

on the level 3 will be animal biology

zoo management principles of health and

safety animal nursing welfare an ecology

welfare and communication health and

husbandry pet store management kennel

cattery management dog grooming work

experience exotic health and husbandry

animal feeding and nutrition specialist

project estate skills business

management pet allied services and also

welfare and breeding

the modules that you’ll be sitting over

a two-year period the first year modules

are set modules which you will have to

pass then your second year goes into

three routes which you can choose either

animal route zoo animal route or science

route and that really does depend on

what career path you want to follow to

which route you choose for your second

year English and maths English and maths

is mandatory and if you do not have a

grade C or level four in English

language and maths you will be required

to study these alongside your animal

care course no questions asked if you

have got a grade D level three you will

study GCSEs alongside your animal care

courses to work towards that C grade

also if you got a grade E or lower we

would be expecting you to work on the

level two functional skills course which

you will be working alongside your

animal care course also expectations

here at Broomfield hall for our animal

students is a minimum of 93 percent

attendance a minimum of 90 percent

punctuality and turning up to lessons on

time you must wear a college uniform on

site as our site is an open site so we

need to be identifying you as a student

instantly by looking at you so for that

it is mandatory that you wear your

college uniform and lanyard at all times

respectful behaviors to peer as and all

staff members are expected also to make

us aware if you are absent using arm

absence text line or via film plan your

route to college to ensure that you are

getting to us on time and there is no

excuses we expect you to engage in

learning and participate in lessons we

expect you also to bring appropriate

stationery

in two lessons and on to our animal

practical units so you are prepared and

able to take notes you need to come

prepared when working on the animal unit

there is a separate set of rules for

that under no circumstances are you

allowed to wear any jewelry whatsoever

that is rings bracelets necklaces

earrings studs or any sort of jewelry

that you’ve embedded into your body

there is no nail varnish whatsoever gels

extensions or anything like that this is

for the safety of our animals there is

also appropriate PPE that you must wear

which is a green lab coat which you can

see on the students there and also you

must must wear steel-toed capped boots

at all times on the animal unit and use

initiative to find your work placements

and find the appropriate work placement

that you want to work at for instance if

you want to go and work in a zoo make

sure your work experience placement is

at a zoo and not at the pet shop down

the road

also make sure you track your progress

at Derby College by using your

individual learning plans which both

staff will be working with you on and

also parents can see so what else do I

need to know so there are a few bullet

points there may be fees charge for the

part-time courses or if you’re over

nineteen so please ask student services

for details or ask in the chat at the

end of this presentation

also work placements are allocated

throughout the year in box and are five

days per week so you need to make sure

that when you are organizing your work

experience it is five days per week and

not two days or three days level three

students will carry out weekend duties

on the animal unit you are required it

is mandatory you are to work one

Saturday and one Sunday this will build

your CV give you some amazing experience

and hopefully it will get you into that

career path

you want to go in too you will also need

appropriate safety clothing for

practical sessions as I’ve just

discussed so lab coat steel toe cap

boots and so on it’s your responsibility

to purchase that and hopefully get them

in place before you start with us in

September you will be required to wear a

uniform that is a t-shirt and a

sweatshirt available to purchase during

induction and also you can do it online

so it gets posted to you jewelry and

false nails are not allowed under any

circumstances in any of our practical

sessions you will be asked to leave if

you are found with them on jewelry and

piercings will not be accepted even with

a letter from parents so please make

sure that you do not have any new

piercings in college time because you

will be asked to take them out also if

you have got stretches in your ears

which you have stretched your earlobes

you need to make sure that they are in

appropriate wear so they do not get

ripped for instance taking the plug out

and taping your earlobe back on to your

ear if you have any allergies especially

to animals please consider if this is

the right course for you and discuss

this with us in the chat at the end if

you are allergic to animals and wanted

to pursue an animal career really do

consider is it right for me as it will

be a tremendous problem if you have

runny eyes and are sneezing all the time

the mission of Derby college group is to

predict and serve the needs of our

business and civic communities we are

committed to working in partnership with

employers to co-create talent for the

success of the region generate new jobs

increase social mobility and bolster

economic prosperity we are therefore

always working hard on securing the best

most relevant employee

partners to help support our students

here really is just a few examples of

our animal care partners we have the

RSPCA that we work with we have cats

protection League twycross zoo castle

field kennels pets at home

Matlock farm park the list is endless

but it to work with them with your work

placement you can just simply ask the

place you want to work with and we as

Derby college can help you and support

you with gaining a rapport with that

business derby college has a significant

impact on many individuals businesses

and the wider community we are committed

to produce in a talent pool equipped

with the right skills and attitudes to

meet the needs of employers we are proud

of our contribution to the economic

growth and social prosperity by guiding

people into learning pathways that lead

to positive destinations we encourage

progress and aspirational outcomes many

of our learners have gone on to achieve

great things since leaving here at dub

at Brimfield and here are a few examples

of many inspirational success stories we

have to share with you so we have had

business owners for the dog groomers at

Rovers return that was one of our

students that did our dog grooming

courses and we have Kelly here it was a

fully qualified vet nurse we have

students that have gone into the army

from here I’m training to be veterinary

technicians we have also had students go

into grooming and being a groom at

thistledown stud

there is a variety of jobs that I know

students that have gone into such as zoo

keeping wildlife experts also education

in zoos working in kennel and categories

working in pet shops being specialist in

pet shops and being on that frontline

some of these jobs that the students do

we are incredibly proud of here at

Brimfield so what’s next tonight so what

you can do if you want to check out

another subject you can head

back to the virtual events homepage and

from there find the other chosen subject

that you want to chat to a team member

about or watch a information PowerPoint

if you don’t need to look at any more

subjects find our student service team

to help you apply now and not sure what

you want to do next why not have a chat

with either me or one of our many

support areas to get some advice and

guidance and see which qualification

will be right for you so we have a

detailed step-by-step guide on how to

apply which is accessible from both our

website and our prospectus that you

should have been given either tonight

virtually or via email

here is a Sarai’s breakdown of the steps

you can expect to take German the

application process here at Derby

college when you head back to the events

homepage after this head over to our

student service team who are here to

help you apply now if you wish or at

least they can give you the advice and

answers on questions you might have in

relation to the application process so

if you have a quick look at this slide

here you can decide on your career

pathway submit your application or you

can gain advice from our student

services advisors and maybe have an

interview virtually we can also accept

your place we will write to you and then

you will attend your enrollment day and

become part of Derby college broom for

your campus it’s been a pleasure talking

to you today please come and see us in

the virtual student services area where

we will be happy to talk to you about

animal care



8:48

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Derby

Animal Care – Course Listings

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: Flexible

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: Flexible

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: Flexible

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: 15/11/2025

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: Flexible

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: 21/06/2025

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: 04/02/2025

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: Flexible

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: 25/01/2025

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: Flexible

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: 10/02/2025

Course Type: Adult and Community
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: 28/02/2025

Course Type: Apprenticeships
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: Apprenticeships
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: Apprenticeships
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: Apprenticeships
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: Higher Education
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: Higher Education
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: Higher Education
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: 15/09/2025

Course Type: Higher Education
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: Higher Education
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: Higher Education
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: Higher Education
Location: Broomfield Hall
Start Date: 15/09/2025

Course Type: School Leaver - Vocational/Technical
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: School Leaver - Vocational/Technical
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: School Leaver - Vocational/Technical
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: School Leaver - Vocational/Technical
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: School Leaver - Vocational/Technical
Location: Broomfield Hall

Course Type: School Leaver - Vocational/Technical
Location: Broomfield Hall

Key Information

Our expert and dedicated teaching team boasts experience across the animal management industries, including zoo keeping, veterinary nursing, animal psychology and farming. They will give you invaluable insights into animal biology, habitats, health and welfare, nutrition, behaviour, breeding and training.

We work closely with a wide range of organisations within the industry, such as the RSPCA, Cats Protection and Castlefield Kennels, to offer you opportunities for work experience, fact-finding visits, employer-led projects and guest lectures. Our students have been on placement with organisations like zoos, kennels and wildlife centres. They have also enjoyed fieldtrips to Twycross Zoo, Yorkshire Wildlife Park, Crufts dog show and even a South African game reserve.

Discover our campuses and facilities here. Each campus page contains:

  • 360-degree images of our facilities
  • A location map
  • A list of courses that are run at the campus
  • Student Success Stories

To find out more about our Animal Care courses attend our next course and career events or contact us on 0800 028 0289

Press the Apply Now button, that can be found at the top and bottom of every course information page and follow the instructions for the InTouch applications portal.

If you are unable to apply online, contact Student Services who will help you complete your application form and will be able to help and guide you to make a decision on the course of study to meet your needs and ambitions.

Related Careers

 

Animal Care – Success Stories

Sarah Lowe

Adult and Community

Sarah Lowe, a former DCG Dog Grooming student with her dog, a black cocker spaniel.

Celine Frosthagen

Higher Education

Celine Frosthagen, a student with brown hair wearing a blue coat holding a frog.

Brooke Moran

School Leaver Vocational

Young girl with glasses wearing a beanie hat and orange t-shirt sat with her arms rested on her legs.

Lauren Wain

School Leaver Vocational

Female horserider with her arm around a horse.

May Williams

School Leaver Vocational

Female student wearing green overalls holding a lamb.

Liberty Stamp Hanes

School Leaver Vocational

Female student, Liberty Stamp Hanes, holding a rabbit.

Jorjia Jepson

School Leaver Vocational

Former Derby College student Jorjia Jepson with her dog Boo.

Jo Lenham

School Leaver Vocational

Jo Lenham with her pet husky dog.

View all DCG Success Stories all role models

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