The long-term future of the Zoo has always been the main priority, we want to see the Zoo prosper and so have produced an ambitious vision which hopefully will see it become one of the leading zoos in the country.

The visual drawing below gives you a taste of what the future holds for Colchester Zoological Society. We must reiterate this is just a vision at this stage, due to this being subject to surveys, consent and planning permission.

You can download our future vision here.

We hope to create many new jobs for the local community, as well as generate and expand our building association with many local suppliers and traders.

A bigger Zoo will not necessarily see the arrival of many new species but will ensure that every animal we have, will have better and bigger facilities, with many habitats tripling in size. We hope to be able to bring new species such as, Gorilla, Bonobo and Okapi amongst others, to retain very much the African theme we have had over the years.

Our Green Zoo Policy will remain, and we are thinking of ways in which we can continue to reduce our carbon footprint such as further use of solar power.

Of course, all of this cannot be achieved overnight. Surveys and planning permission application is required and granted before anything can start and we need to build the funds to fulfil these plans to the highest standard possible.

We would like to thank all of our dedicated staff, visitors and supporters who have, for so many years, given us the strength to survive and helped bring us through the darkest of days. without your support we would not be where we are today and striving towards the Zoo of tomorrow. We hope that the Zoo of the future here in Colchester will be one that the local community will be proud of. We strongly believe that this vision will secure a future which will allow us to achieve our mission and revolutionise the Zoo as we know it today.

This will not be possible without your support, so we kindly ask you to continue visiting and enjoying the wonders of wildlife with us. Help us to carry on supporting conservation projects worldwide and making a difference.