BRINGING a snake into a classroom is a fairly reliable way to get children’s attention.
For Naomi Ennis, however, getting their attention is only the beginning.
The former zookeeper and animal studies lecturer has spent the past five years building Animal Teach, a Runcorn-based business that uses encounters with reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates to turn curiosity, and sometimes fear, into an opportunity to learn.
But behind the snakes, geckos and cockroaches is a much more personal story about family, confidence and one woman’s determination to build a career around the things that mattered most to her.
When 34-year-old Naomi started Animal Teach, she wanted to continue working with animals and educating people while having more time with her children.
“I didn't necessarily set out with a huge business plan or expect Animal Teach to become what it is today,” she said.
Instead, the business grew from a desire to combine animals, education, family and making a difference.
That philosophy can be found in Animal Teach’s tagline, ‘Inspire Our Future’, which Naomi says represents making animal education accessible, supporting the local community and encouraging future generations to care about the natural world.
Her previous careers provided the foundations.
Working as a zookeeper taught the Runcorn resident the importance of animal welfare and understanding behaviour, while lecturing taught her how to communicate the same subject to very different audiences.
Today, those skills come together when Animal Teach visits schools, families and community organisations.
A typical workshop can include discussions, demonstrations, investigations and encounters with animals including corn snakes, crested geckos, spiders, insects and snails.
But simply getting an animal out for children to see is not the objective.
“Meeting an animal is the hook, but it isn't the end goal,” Naomi said.
“I want children to understand something about that animal – how it lives, how it behaves, what it needs, where it comes from or how it fits into the wider world.”
Sometimes that means challenging perceptions of creatures people would usually rather avoid.
Naomi has seen visitors who previously killed spiders decide to leave them alone after learning more about them, while animals such as millipedes and cockroaches can unexpectedly become favourites.
For Naomi, replacing fear with understanding is one of the most rewarding parts of the job.
Another is confidence.
Having been a quiet teenager herself, Naomi remembers finding everyday social situations difficult.
Animals became something she felt comfortable and confident around, and she now hopes Animal Teach can provide similar opportunities for young people.
She has watched nervous children gradually move closer to an animal, ask a question, or attempt something they previously thought they could not do.
Animal Teach has also worked with children with selective mutism who have grown in confidence communicating with peers, as well as teenagers who progressed from being nervous about public speaking to presenting in front of large audiences.
Sometimes, Naomi says, the animal simply gives a child a reason to engage.
While the encounters are the part audiences see, there is another side to Animal Teach.
Naomi is clear that animal welfare takes priority over providing an experience.
Animals are monitored before, during, and after sessions and are never forced to interact.
Limits are placed on how long they work and the number of people they encounter.
Some do not attend public events at all.
Lancelot, Animal Teach’s Yemen chameleon, stays at home because his sensitive and, as Ennis puts it, “slightly grumpy” nature means public events are not right for him.
“The animals aren't toys, props or performers,” she said.
That approach is backed by formal requirements.
Animal Teach is licensed by Halton Borough Council for keeping or training animals for exhibition, with daily records covering areas including feeding, behaviour, transport and welfare.
Building the business behind all of this has not always been straightforward.
Naomi started Animal Teach while her children were three months and three years old.
Beginning with £0, she sourced second-hand materials, built equipment herself and knocked on doors looking for support.
She later completed The King’s Trust Enterprise Programme, while a Will It Work Grant helped fund the business’s Animal Activity Licence.
Five years later, Animal Teach has become a multi-award-winning family-run business and works with schools, museums, families and community organisations across the area.
Yet Naomi does not measure its future simply by how large it can become.
With a children’s book, courses, educational partnerships and Zoology Club already expanding Animal Teach beyond workshops, she wants the next five years to be about increasing its impact without losing the values on which it was built.
“I don't necessarily want Animal Teach to be the biggest animal education business,” she said.
“I want it to make the biggest difference it can.”
To find out more about Animal Teach, head to - https://www.animalteach.co.uk/
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