BIAZA Blog: a look back at 2024

As 2024 swiftly comes to a close, the BIAZA Executive Office looks back at a packed year and ahead to an exciting future.  

It is certainly a challenge to summarise the busy twelve months at the BIAZA Executive Office, with the sheer number of projects on the go.  

One huge endeavour was reached after many years of planning; we launched the BIAZA Accreditation process. For this we enlisted two Accreditation Officers. Frankie Lawrence-Thompson changed from her previous role, and we were thrilled to welcome Deana Stephens to the team. Accreditation has progressed well and combined with the efforts of Accreditation Screeners, the first handful of BIAZA Members have completed the process. Accreditation will be a transformative system for the sector in the UK and Ireland, supporting good zoos and aquariums to reach and exceed the highest standards in animal welfare, conservation, education and research. We have no doubt this will ultimately lead to a stronger, more confident zoo sector.  

We love a conference and in 2024 we held twelve conferences, including the Conservation Conference at Chester Zoo, where the Conservation Committee and Native Species Working Group came together for one brilliant celebration and sharing of projects. Plus, the inaugural Ectotherms Conference took place in Drayton Manor Zoo which brought together over a hundred aquarium, amphibian, reptile, and terrestrial invertebrate experts in an unparalleled CPD opportunity.  

We loved meeting many of you at the BIAZA Annual Conference, in Chester Zoo, and the following Gala Dinner which celebrated the BIAZA Awards, in video format for the first time, something we’re continuing with in 2025. Congratulations to everyone who took home a BIAZA Award in 2024! 

In addition to conferences, we run and facilitate dozens of workshops, meetings and events every year and our events remain the pre-eminent opportunities for development within the zoo sector.  

The team has continued to work diligently to represent the sector in politics and this year we had General Elections in both the UK and Ireland.  

The very start of the year saw our wildly successful inaugural Great British Wildlife Restoration Award Reception (more on that later). We had numerous meetings with politicians, including the All Party Parliamentary Group for Zoos and Aquariums which heard from experts from our members including West Midlands Safari Park, ZSL, Chester Zoo, The Deep, Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm and the National Marine Aquarium. Members of our Public Affairs Working Group attended the political party conferences – reaching thousands of politically-minded audiences and we supported lots of political visits to our member sites. Just prior to Christmas we continued to lobby on the issue of animal transfers – which have seen a catastrophic drop since Brexit.  

The new Standards, however, continue to elude us as the Government and Ministers change. We are hoping to see the new Standards in the new year.  

In 2025, we will be repeating successful campaigns like Woman of the Year, World Autism Acceptance Week, Spotted on Site, and Love Your Zoo/Aquarium. We will also be running Scimitar Horned Oryx Day for the first time on 16 August 2025, celebrating how zoos/aquarium can change the fate of a species. The scimitar horned oryx was nominated by Marwell Wildlife and voted by the public to have its own day during a fantastically close competition for Love Your Zoo/Aquarium week. We have more campaigns to come, all celebrating zoo/aquariums with conservation, husbandry, education and DEAI messaging. The ideas are endless; for example, did you know we launched the first ever BIAZA Fat Bear Week this year? 

 A huge range of resources were produced by our many Working Groups and Committees this year. Numerous animal care sheets provide the most up-to-date guidance on the amazing species in the care of our members. Resources on terminology in the community and close-contact imagery provide some world-leading advice on these aspects of communication. 

We are always inspired by the brilliant achievements of our member zoos and aquariums in education, research, and conservation, from supporting endangered species abroad to restoring nature at home. Many projects from the latter category will gain a well-earned spotlight during the Great British Wildlife Restoration Parliamentary Reception in January. After last year’s huge success where ZSL’s Oyster Restoration project took the crown, we look forward to another round of engaging a (largely new) selection of MPs with the awe-inspiring work of zoos/aquariums.  

We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who is part of a BIAZA Committee, Working Group or Sub-Group/Task Force who volunteer their time to add to the incredible expertise of the sector.  

As always, we are delighted to follow the journeys of our member zoos and aquariums and we hope everyone has a restful festive period. We look forward to working with you all to continue to push the zoo and aquarium sector further and celebrate even more successes in 2025. 

- BIAZA Executive Office