Up to 10pc of staff at two of region's biggest zoos are set to lose their jobs following “significant cost increases”.
The charity behind Banham Zoo and Africa Alive said up to 20 of its employees were being made redundant, with “significant savings” required to keep the parks open.
In an email sent to all staff this morning, the charity’s CEO Claudia Roberts said that “relentless” cost increases had led to the job cuts.
She wrote: “Despite the huge efforts in driving the income growth over the last year, the income as it stands will not cover this significant increase to ZSEA’s (Zoological Society of East Anglia) cost base, so significant savings are required.
“It was therefore concluded following discussion with the trustees, that in order to continue to look towards a sustainable future, redundancies at Africa Alive and Banham Zoo would be unavoidable to protect the charity.”
One employee, whose job was made redundant on Wednesday, said the timing couldn't have been worse.
The man, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: “Everyone is completely heartbroken.
“It’s just weeks until Christmas and people are very scared about what they’re going to do.
“There had been a lot of positivity around the new plans for the parks, with the big investment they’re putting into new attractions, and now we’re all completely crushed.
“It’s not just losing your job. It’s losing the connection you have with the animals that you spend everyday with.”
This latest round of layoffs is the second in recent years.
More than 70 jobs were cut across the two parks in 2020 - a third of the total workforce.
Gerard Smith, ZSEA chair of trustees, said: “After surviving the pandemic, we have been faced over the past year with the cost of living crisis, energy costs, and ever increasing supply chain costs. The increases in the minimum wage announced last week will also significantly financially impact the cost base of the charity from April next year.
“We have to be able to maintain our high-quality veterinary care and animal management.
“The Trustees, having reviewed the recent budget review for 2024/25 and the re-forecasting of energy and utility bills, alongside all the other rising costs, concluded that to continue to look towards a sustainable future the redundancies at Africa Alive and Banham Zoo would be needed to protect the charity through future winter periods due to the seasonality of the operations.”
FUTURE OF BANHAM ZOO
In February, Banham Zoo unveiled plans to focus more on native species from the British Isles.
The multi-million pound, 10 year project is set to create a new centrepiece showcasing wildlife from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland.
The park said it hoped the new attractions would bring an extra 20,000 people to the park.
However, critics expressed concern that the zoo would lose some of its appeal, with one long-term visitor - who wanted to remain anonymous - adding: “I find it hard to believe that the proposed plans would work. I don’t think they would bring anyone new in.”
The zoo has been quick to defend the move, with Ms Roberts saying: “We could have added more tiger enclosures, but the future of zoos is making sure you have good representation.
“Looking at your master line-up you want to make sure you have a fantastic local collection too, which is what we’ve been missing.
“People want to see that we’re ahead of the curve, and with one in six species in the UK now endangered, this proves we care about local animals as much as those overseas.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here