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THE ISSUE

Bristol Zoological Gardens is hallowed ground in this city; something our city has been proud of and famous for, for a very long time.

 

 

However, Bristol Zoological Society’s current leadership have spent the past four and a half years trying to sell the world’s 5th oldest Zoo to become a luxury housing estate.

As of now, they have not been successful: Bristol Zoo has not been sold and it still exists, frozen in time behind closed doors.

Bristol Zoo’s own website (until it deleted the page after announcing its closure plans) described its own gardens as “one of the UK’s most important collections of plants” and “170 years of nurture and gardening artistry.”

Bristol Zoo’s current leadership wants to chop down 162 of their own trees and despite their claims and can offer no guarantee that the gardens will stay open to the public in the medium to long term.

Bristol Zoo’s current leadership say they will never reopen Bristol Zoo. We are fully aware of this.

This petition has two purposes: 

1.     It calls on Bristol Zoological Society’s current leadership to step aside with humility and grace and allow new leadership to come in and take the historic Society in a very different direction. A direction that Isambard Kingdom Brunel - one the Society’s founders - would be proud of: reopening a NEW and BETTER Bristol Zoo Gardens to run alongside the Wild Place Project as two mutually complementary visitor attractions.

2.     It calls on Acorn Property Group - the housing developer that the Zoo’s current leadership wants to sell its historic to - to withdraw their bid to buy Bristol Zoo Gardens and develop it into luxury housing.

CURRENT BRISTOL ZOO LEADERSHIP MUST STEP DOWN

Bristol Zoological Society’s current leadership has demonstrably failed and must step aside for just some of the following reasons:

Visit savebristolzoogardens.org for all the info…

• Since Bristol Zoo’s closure, Bristol Zoological Society has lost almost half a million annual visitors.
• Bristol Zoological Society lost well approximately £9.9m across 2022-2024.
• Bristol Zoo Project (formerly the Wild Place) lost £1.8 million in 2023.
• We were told by the zoo’s current leadership that financial difficulties, exacerbated by Covid led to the decision to close Bristol Zoo: UNTRUE.
• The Zoo’s leadership have continuously and intentionally described Bristol Zoo as “not fit for purpose.” Zoo inspection reports obtained by FOI show this to be factually UNTRUE.
• Between 2019-2022 and against the picture the current leadership painted of apparent financial hardship, Bristol Zoological Society’s combined governance (predominantly consultancy costs) and capital expenditure spend was £12.589 million.
• Between 2019 and 2022, spending on governance rose an astonishing 864%.
• Bristol Zoo was NOT a failing institution: in fact, it was consistently ranked among the Top 10 most visited and best zoos in the UK.
• Bristol Zoo was NOT a failing institution: in fact, it was consistently ranked as Bristol’s most visited paid for visitor attraction.
• According to publicly available accounts, Bristol Zoo Project (formerly the Wild Place) has never been profitable.
• The Zoo’s current leadership has been planning to sell 41 acres of its Wild Place/Bristol Zoo Project site since 2019 for a housing development. This despite continually publicly claiming the site is 136-acres in size and saying it had no alternative way of raising money other than selling Bristol Zoo Gardens.
• There are serious concerns about the probity of Acorn Property Group - the property developer that Zoo’s current leadership wants to sell its historic site to - see below for more info.
• Bristol Zoological Society’s current CEO had never worked at a zoo before taking over in 2018 and despite all of the above, he has received at least two pay rises since 2018, representing a personal pay increase of 62%.
• Bristol Zoological Society’s current chair of trustees is a retired commercial real estate lawyer and the vice chair is a multi-millionaire merchant venturer with a professional background in construction. This lack of specific Zoo-related experience from the three most powerful people in the Society cannot be discounted when looking at the above facts.

Douglas Richardson – International Zoo Consultant says:

“I have never understood how individuals that have no experience in this very specific field are able, with confidence, to make decisions that dramatically impact the animals whose home is the zoo and the staff that have dedicated their lives and careers to the organisation. I believe that the decision to close Bristol Zoo can be reversed and this city can regain one of its misplaced jewels.”

 

 

This photo - taken in April 2025 - demonstrates the extraordinary lack of respect Bristol Zoo's current leadership have for Bristol Zoo Gardens. Behind closed doors whilst they thought no one could see, they have turned our city's crown jewels into a tip

ACORN PROPERTY GROUP MUST WITHDRAW THEIR BID TO BUY BRISTOL ZOO GARDENS AND TURN INTO LUXURY HOUSING

There is precedent for Acorn withdrawing from projects when coming under public pressure, as it did in Frome in August 2024. It said:

“Acorn Property Group prides itself in working with local communities to provide much-needed regeneration through residential-led schemes. It has become abundantly clear that in this case, despite our best endeavours to work with all the stakeholders, the local community does not wish to work with Acorn and on that basis we have decided to withdraw from the process.”

Just before Acorn released this statement and pulled out of the proposed development, this is what Shane Collins - Green Councillor for Frome East Somerset Council - said at a Somerset Council Executive public meeting in August last year, regarding his serious concerns about Acorn. 

"Publicly available accounts suggest that 19 Acorn companies have filed for insolvency in the last 20 years with a total deficiency of £43,427,355.00. Whilst a 'special purpose vehicle' SPV is often usual to set up for a housing development, a deficiency of over £43 million is unusual to say the least.

We do not know who is the 'ultimate controlling party' of RST Residential Investments Limited, who own Acorn and since the Highgate Trust, who appears to own the Acorn RST group of companies, is a Trust and therefore does not have to reveal ownership. 

Although Trustpilot reviews are open to abuse, the 1 star reviews on Trustpilot reveal a litany of complaints and frustrations with unfinished works, ground works still being done when people have moved in, contractors not paid, and snagging jobs unfinished. Acorn have admitted to writing their own 5 star reviews."

Publicly available accounts suggest that the figure of 19 Acorn companies having filed for insolvency in the last 20 years with a total deficiency of over £43 million that Cllr Collins gave in August 2024, has now (as of April 2025) risen to 20 companies and a total deficiency of £53 million. 

The latest example of this is in Cornwall in December last year, where the High Court has determined that RST Constantine Bay Homes Ltd - an offshoot of Acorn Property Group’s Cornwall developer, Acorn Blue - owe Cornwall Council £1.2 million. This was money that was earmarked for public open space, education and local affordable housing. 

In October 2023 in the Vale of Glamorgan, another Acorn company - Bonvilston Vale Limited - went into administration owing a total of £12.6 million to 26 creditors and leaving behind a half-finished housing development.

Architects Landhouse Ltd, are taking Acorn to court for unpaid debts and breach of contract. They say:

"We made the mistake of trusting Acorn Property Group, and now we find ourselves in the extremely difficult situation, having to pursue payment through the courts. We urge others to exercise extreme caution when dealing with Acorn Property Group or any of their subsidiary companies, as their actions have demonstrated a lack of integrity and commitment to honouring their contractual obligations."

All of the above information gives extremely serious concern as to the integrity and probity of Acorn Property Group and the wisdom of selling to them, the world’s 5th oldest Zoo, a stunning botanical garden and one of Bristol’s crown jewels; an irreplaceable historical, cultural and heritage asset. It also raises very serious question marks about the judgement decision making of Bristol Zoo's current leadership.

CONCLUSION

Taking all of the above into account, it would be a TRAVESTY for Bristol if the actions of a tiny minority of people in positions of power, impact so negatively and irreversibly on the rest of us.

Bristol Zoological Society Current Leadership: YOU MUST STAND DOWN.

Acorn Property Group: YOU ARE NOT WELCOME AT BRISTOL ZOO GARDENS, WE DO NOT WANT YOU HERE, PLEASE WITHDRAW YOUR BID.

Once Bristol Zoo is sold, there is no going back and it will be too late. As of now, Bristol Zoo Gardens has not been sold and it isn’t too late, so:

PLEASE MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD by SIGNING AND SHARING THIS PETITION!

We are raising money to help fund our campaign. Please DONATE TODAY to help the campaign continue to SAVE BRISTOL ZOO GARDENS!

*PLEASE NOTE: If this website asks you for money, it will NOT go towards this campaign.* 

To donate to the SBZG campaign, please do so here.

Please visit the SBZG campaign website to find out more. 

www.savebristolzoogardens.org 

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