Excited students and teachers at a college in Eccles are celebrating the arrival of two “rare” goat kids at their state-of-the-art animal centre.
Eccles Sixth Form College Animal Park welcomed two English-type goats on Friday, 1 May, which has been hailed as a step towards the conservation of one of Britain’s rarest native livestock breeds.
The twins, a male named Bandit and a female named Belle, were born at the College’s animal park in Salford and are expected to be registered as part of the endangered English goat breed in the coming months.
With students preparing for their end-of-year exams, Life Sciences teacher Kadie Brooks visits to see the newly born goats, which will give them much-deserved downtime.
“We’re really excited as a college as having them during exam season is an enormous benefit for students to take some time out and be able to see them and relieve some exam stress,” she said.
English goats are classified as a “priority breed” by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust, its highest conservation category, reserved for the UK’s most endangered native livestock.
Bandit and Belle’s father, Eddy, is a registered English goat from Wrexham, while their mother, Lauren, is an unregistered British Toggenburg. The pair were introduced on 29 November 2025, with Lauren’s 150-day gestation resulting in the successful birth of the twins this spring.
“These English goat kids demonstrate our commitment to the conservation of our native British breeds and the development of these life-saving animal populations even in the heart of Salford,” explained Animal Park Manager Joao Louro.
“Our students will be well-equipped to understand how to work with a range of animals in a range of different scenarios.”
Described as “one of the country’s most outstanding animal management centres,” Eccles Sixth Form College provides 16-18-year-olds with the opportunity to study animal, equine, veterinary nursing and science courses.
The park is home to more than 500 individual animals across over 110 species, including alpacas, marmosets, capybara, Argentine black and white tegus, clownfish, and bamboo rat snakes, spread across four acres of outdoor space.
A spokesperson for the College explained that the birth of the rare goat twins reflects the centre’s “continued commitment to animal welfare, conservation, and education.”
A student, who wished to remain unnamed, said: “We love seeing the goat kids in our time out and just before lessons, it just gives us that extra boost if it’s raining or close to the end of the day.”
Eccles Sixth Form College offers a range of specialist courses in Animal Management, Equine Studies, and Veterinary Nursing Assistant training, providing students with valuable hands-on experience working with a wide variety of species while contributing to important conservation and welfare initiatives.
More information about the college is available here.
