The North of England Zoological Society – Annual Report and Financial Statements 2021
PUBLIC BENEFIT, GRANT-MAKING AND FUNDRAISING Public benefit The Trustees have complied with the duty in section 4 of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to public guidance published by the Charity Commission, including its supplementary guidance on fee charging. The Society relies on income from admission fees, food & beverage and retail sales and other charges to cover its operating costs. We have a number of different approaches to mitigating financial barriers to participation, which includes provision of concessionary rate tickets to certain groups alongside free and discounted tickets to targeted groups including one-to-one carers. In 2021, 165,317 children under three visited the zoo for free. Despite being impacted by COVID-19, our winter free tickets scheme for schools enabled free entry for 9,039 educational visits in 2021, and a further 2,981 pupils visited for free as part of our outreach project work. Through our educational project work, we provide a range of services to schools and community groups that aim to increase access to our programmes and services, all without charge. In 2021 this included 420 young people participating in careers webinars as part of our online Careers in Conservation Festival and pupils from 24 different schools in low-income areas (creating 11,796 engagements) participating in outreach projects led by our Education team. We also provide a variety of support for young people looking to gain experience, ranging from teenagers completing the volunteering element of their Duke of Edinburgh Award (20 across the year) through to early career conservationists being supported to study for their PhDs (22 supported in 2021). We also work actively with local partners to provide participation opportunities for people who might not otherwise be able to access them – for example, providing supported volunteering opportunities for young people from Ancora House (a local youth mental health service). Our online engagement programme provides alternatives for those who, for whatever reason, are unable to visit the zoo. We provide over 300 quality learning resources free to download from our website. At the start of the year, when the zoo was closed during the national lockdown, this was enhanced with the provision of free-to-access live educational streams from our zoo’s keepers and education staff.
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Our Nature Reserve is open to all without charge, providing year-round access to nature. In September 2021, over 2,000 people attended our free Wildlife Connections Festival, engaging with fun and educational activities and experiences linked to the nature reserve.
Grant-making The Society supports a wide range of conservation and research activities, both in the zoo and externally – often in partnership with other organisations to whom we provide ongoing financial support. Grants towards scholarships are also awarded. Rather than providing one-off grants, the Society works in partnership with other like-minded organisations with whom projects are codeveloped in line with our mission and Conservation Masterplan. Criteria for funding support for such projects include alignment with Chester Zoo Conservation Masterplan, feasibility, expected conservation outcomes, qualification of project personnel, capacity building, benefits to local communities, relevance to other conservation initiatives of the zoo and regions or countries where the zoo already has a field conservation focus, links to species within the collection plan, and opportunities for technical support from zoo employees. Primarily, support is provided to those projects that are judged to have potential to make a significant positive conservation impact and a contribution to one or more of the six targets of our Conservation Masterplan. Applications are requested to be made on our standard grant application forms and these are reviewed internally against standardised criteria before a funding decision is made.
Fundraising The Society is committed to making fundraising a fair, responsible and enjoyable experience for our supporters and those who fundraise on our behalf. We want people to feel connected to our work and understand the incredible impact their donations make. The Society is wholly committed to best fundraising practice and, as such, we’re signed up with the Fundraising Regulator. Both the organisation, and the fundraisers operating within it, abide by the Code of Fundraising Practice. We do not undertake fundraising that we consider to be intrusive or not akin to the inclusive culture of our
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