Keeper for a Day at the Aquarium

Keeper for a Day is back at the National Marine Aquarium on Friday 24 July, and it's one of those things you've probably walked past a hundred times without ever really knowing what goes on behind the glass. The whole idea is pretty simple: you spend the day working alongside the aquarist team, helping to look after the more than 5,000 marine animals they keep here in Plymouth.

You'll start with a VIP tour of the aquarium, and from there you're straight into the practical side of things. You'll get stuck into preparing food and vitamins, and you'll take part in animal enrichment and conditioning sessions. There's habitat cleaning and maintenance to do, and you'll be testing pH and salinity levels to make sure the water is just right. You'll be wearing a lab coat for the day, and the feeding part involves handling raw fish — they provide gloves, so you're covered there — but there's no physical contact with the animals themselves.

It's a good look at how the place actually runs. The National Marine Aquarium is one of the UK's leading aquariums, and it's a conservation site, so the work you're doing is part of how they care for the animals. You'll see sharks, stingrays and a turtle across four immersive zones: Plymouth Sound, British Coasts, Atlantic Ocean and Blue Planet. When you're not on keeper duties, you can still catch the Ocean Discovery Rangers, who run daily talks, animal feeds and dive shows.

Along with the experience, you get a few things to take home: a goodie bag with an exclusive t-shirt, a 'Keeper for a Day' certificate, and an annual pass — or a year's extension if you've already got one. The day also includes entry to the aquarium, so you can wander back through the zones on your own. If 24 July doesn't work, there are plenty of other dates to choose from: 31 July, and then 7, 14, 15, 21, 28 and 29 August. The aquarium is at Rope Walk, Coxside, Plymouth, PL4 0DX.