Council gives update on South Lakes Safari Zoo

An inspection of South Lakes Safari Zoo in April found while the inspectors did not doubt the ‘hard work’ and ‘passion’ of the staff of the zoo, they had ‘grave concerns’ about ‘many obvious declining standards’.

Members of the regulatory sub-committee for Westmorland and Furness Council added several conditions and directions to the Dalton attraction’s licence at a meeting on July 22.

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The sub-committee stated: “The sub-committee having heard from the officer, the advisory veterinary surgeon, the licence holder, and having read the evidence in the committee papers, is satisfied that the conditions of the licence are not being met.”

A response by the zoo operators Cumbria Zoo Company Limited (CZCL) to the inspection, said: “We fully accept there are findings which should not have happened, there are no excuses, we take full responsibility for these, and we have evidenced where these have been corrected or measures have been implemented to correct them.”

Pictures from inside the South Lakes Safari Zoo (Image: Freedom for Animals)

Additional conditions and directions were placed on the zoo to ensure the site accommodates and keeps the animals in a manner consistent with the standards set out in the Secretary of State’s Standards of Modern Zoo Practice.

They include:

• to provide suitable heating within the old giraffe house as an inspection previously found the original heater for the enclosure was no longer working.
• to either trap and remove all Prairie dogs that are now living in the easterly end of the enclosure or modify the enclosure fencing to ensure that in all areas it is constructed in such a way as to prevent their escape.
• to ensure the single Nyala and the wildebeest are placed with animals of the same species so they can live in ‘normal compatible’ social groups.
• the overflow car park cannot be used by members of the public until it is repaired.
• to have a closure plan in place within three months of the meeting to ensure ‘continued compliance’ with the zoo licensing act. The closure plan must include a ‘detailed animal stock list’ of animals moving to the new site as well as for those the zoo licence holder is not planning on moving to the new site.

Documents previously submitted to the council by CZCL said the company had ‘prioritised development at a new holiday cottage site in Tebay to ensure a future for Cumbria Zoo’.

However they added: “We do not believe this has impacted on the welfare or wellbeing of the animals living at Safari Zoo, and this is evidenced in your acknowledgement that there are no animal welfare or health issues.

READ MORE: Freedom for Animals makes renewed calls for closure of Dalton Zoo

“Again, we in no way say this as an excuse for the findings of the inspection, but to support our view that we are doing everything in our power to maintain standards at Dalton, and to secure a future for Cumbria Zoo past the end of the lease.”

The current lease expires on May 10, 2027.

The condition says if animals are likely to remain on the existing site after the zoo licence holder departs, ‘appropriate and legally compliant’ plans must be in place to manage these animals.

READ MORE: Owners of Dalton Zoo opening new site in Tebay with rhinos

In the meeting, this condition was amended to allow the licence holder to seek approval for a change of the plan should circumstances change.

A spokesperson for Westmorland and Furness Council said: “We are aware of the concerns raised regarding South Lakes Safari Zoo. As the licensing authority, the council has investigated those concerns and sought advice from our zoo veterinary inspector on the animal welfare matters raised.

“The Zoo Licensing Act 1981 sets the protocol for the way zoos are licenced. The council’s remit is to apply this national legislation and ensure the zoo complies with the terms of its licence in accordance with the Act. Under the terms of the Act the council monitors and reviews the zoo’s operations through a regular regime of informal, periodical and special inspections.

“Yesterday, the council’s regulatory sub-committee met to discuss the outcomes of the inspections and the conditions the zoo are required to meet under the terms of their licence.”