Animal Care Assistant

Location: Sheffield City Council Stray Dog Kennels, 2 Stadium Way, Sheffield, S9 3HN. Our kennels operate 7 days a week, 365 days a year (8:30am-4:30pm)

Esential Requirement

This role is not suitable for candidates without direct commercial Kennel experience.

You must be able to demonstrate substantial, recent experience working in a busy commercial kennel environment, including hands-on care and handling of dogs of varied and unknown temperament.

Applicants that do not clearly evidence this will not be shortlisted.

The role

This is a physically demanding, operational role within a small team delivering the Council's statutory stray dog service. You will be responsible for the safe handling, care and management of dogs, alongside interaction with the public in sometimes challenging situations.

You will need to :

Have proven, hands-on experience in a commercial kennel setting
Be fully confident handling a wide range of dogs, including those that are untrained, nervous or aggressive
Be resilient and able to work in a fast-paced, high-responsibility environment
Work flexibly across a 7-day rota, including weekends and public holidays
Deliver clear, professional communication and customer care

Formal animal care qualifications are desirable but will not be accepted as a substitute for kennel experience.

Key Responsibilities

Daily care, welfare monitoring and safe handling of dogs
Cleaning and disinfection of all kennel areas to required standards
Accurate recording of work using IT systems
Managing enquiries from the public and colleagues

This is a part-time vacancy for a minimum of 30 hours per week, currently on a rota covering 7 days a week.

For informal enquiries , please contact Tracy Rayworth at

tracy.rayworth@sheffield.gov.uk

We are investing in our workforce and are promoting opportunities to our under-represented groups. We value equality, diversity and inclusion and are focused on increasing the diversity of our workforce, particularly the number of Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, Disabled and LGBTQ+ people, so that our teams reflect the communities in the city we serve. We are also supporting staff with unpaid caring responsibilities to work flexibly.

It is a great time to join us and we welcome your application.

Under the Guaranteed Interview scheme, applicants who are disabled, care leavers, or armed forces veterans will be guaranteed an interview if they meet the essential criteria and indicate their eligibility on the application form. Sometimes, if lots of people apply, we might not be able to interview everyone who qualifies for the Guarantee. In these cases, we’ll interview the candidates who best meet the essential criteria for the job.

Full-time employees work 37 hours for 52 weeks of the year and we offer a generous holiday entitlement. We are open to discussions about a wide range of flexible working opportunities which benefit you and the Council, including reduced hour contracts, working part time or as a job share.

If you are appointed to this role, your starting salary will be at the bottom of the grade. If you provide payslip evidence that your basic pay is greater than the bottom of the grade, we will consider starting you at the point of minimum advantage within the grade.

Equality of pay is extremely important to us. All roles at Sheffield City Council are going through an evaluation process which may result in changes to some pay arrangements from 2026. Find out more on our Sheff news page.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all individuals, ensuring a safe and supportive environment for everyone and where appropriate to the role the successful applicant will be required to undertake relevant safeguarding checks.