This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

The founder of a zoo in Cumbria, where nearly 500 animals died in less than four years, has been refused a new licence.

The chair of Barrow council’s licensing committee, Tony Callister, said the unanimous decision was made because councillors were not satisfied conservation matters referred to in the Zoo Licensing Act would be implemented.

Last week, a damning report on conditions at South Lakes Safari zoo in Dalton-in-Furness, which is home to more than 1,500 animals, found 486 died of causes including emaciation and hypothermia between December 2013 and September 2016.

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Inspectors recommended the local authority refuse to renew the zoo’s licence and that David Gill, who founded the zoo in 1994, be prosecuted under the Animal Welfare Act for allowing animals to suffer.

The inspectors, who are appointed by the government, found “overcrowding, poor hygiene, poor nutrition, lack of suitable animal husbandry and a lack of any sort of developed veterinary care” when they visited in January.

Callister said the committee had taken into account Gill’s conviction under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 regarding the escape into the wild of a number of sacred ibis.

The zoo was awarded a six-year licence in June 2010 and the council received Gill’s application for renewal in January 2016. Last July, the council rejected the application, agreeing with inspectors that Gill was “not a fit and suitable person” to manage the zoo.

But the law dictates that if the licensee reapplies for a new licence, the existing licence continues to apply until the application has been processed or withdrawn. Although Gill’s licence has now been terminated, the zoo will stay open until a decision is made this summer on a licence application by Cumbria Zoo Company Ltd, which now runs the attraction.

The zoo was fined £255,000 last June for health and safety breaches after the death of keeper Sarah McClay, 24, who was mauled by a Sumatran tiger in 2013. Gill was criticised for saying McClay died because she failed to follow the correct procedures.



Among a catalogue of animal deaths in the report were those of two snow leopard cubs named Miska and Natasja, who were discovered partially eaten in their enclosure. An African spurred tortoise named Goliath died after being electrocuted by electric fencing and the decomposing body of a squirrel monkey was discovered behind a radiator.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A catalogue of animal deaths at the zoo were listed in the inspectors’ report. Photograph: Mark Pinder/The Guardian

Following the publication of the inspectors’ report, a spokeswoman for the Captive Animals’ Protection Society said the zoo licensing system was failing to protect animals and accused local authorities of neglecting to punish zoos that fell below required standards.

The charity has called for a centralised body to monitor zoo standards, to replace the current system where local authorities are responsible for organising inspections.

Gill formally handed over management of the zoo to Cumbria Zoo Company and its chief executive, Karen Brewer, in January. The business is leasing the zoo for six months from Gill, whose lawyer said he had “stepped away from all trading and management activities connected with the zoo”.

Cumbria Zoo Company is in the process of purchasing South Lakes Safari Zoo Ltd, the former operating company, from owner Gill.

Inspectors remained unconvinced that this transfer of power was enough to change conditions, accusing Gill of being “desperate to continue to maintain control over the zoo in one form or another”.



“Between November and July 2015, nine different management teams have been proposed to the [local authority] to manage the zoo,” the report reads.

“But there has always been a single common denominator behind all these changes; [David Gill] continued to run the zoo, either directly or indirectly, with [Karen Brewer] being presented as the manager or CEO.”

In a response to an inspectors’ report last year, Brewer defended Gill against what she described as unwarranted personal attacks. “What perhaps is hard to perceive for the inspectors, and for myself and the management to portray, is the synergistic relationship between Safari Zoo and David Gill,” she wrote.

“I am confident in my own position to manage the zoo without David here on a regular basis, but we do need his ideas and his contribution in this zoo as it is vital to keep its heart alive.”

The Captive Animals Society criticised the change of management as inadequate. “Four out of eight of the new directors of Cumbria Zoo Ltd are past directors or key managers at South Lakes Safari Zoo,” it said.

“The CEO of Cumbria Zoo, Karen Brewer, has been present at South Lakes Safari zoo inspections as far back as 2011. At these inspections, inspectors have raised varying degrees of animal welfare concerns and deaths.”

A statement the Facebook page for Cumbria Zoo Company Ltd read: “We are aware of the decision to refuse Mr Gill’s application. Safari Zoo remains open and CZCL need your support. We are passionate about our animals and about ensuring a culture of care and love, meeting their needs to showcase our animals and allowing them to engage with visitors, whilst being valued and respected.

“Cumbria Zoo is thoroughly committed to delivering high standards of animal welfare for the animals in our care and others impacted by our conservation activities.”

John Woodcock, MP for Barrow and Furness, said the onus was on any new management to show they had understood the gravity of the failings and to completely change the culture at the zoo.

“Simply shuffling around the name on top of the door and making noises about lessons being learnt won’t be enough given the seriousness of the offences.”