If you’re planning a school trip to London Zoo, we’ve pulled together all the health and safety details below you may need in order to prepare for your visit. 

Help with your Risk Assessment

ZSL policies follow Zoo Licencing Act and relevant Health and Safety legislation. You are welcome to use our risk assessment guides and other documents to aid you in preparing for your visit:

London Zoo Educational Visits Risk Assessment 2023/24

Education Supervision Guidelines 2023/24

General Safety Guide for School Groups 2023/24

london zoo 2024 Public Liability Certificate

Please note that these are only guidelines; we encourage you to conduct your own risk assessment.

Once you have booked your trip you are entitled to a free preliminary recce visit to the zoo (one teacher per class) to help with this. We can also offer pre-visit consultations with the learning team over the phone or via a video conferencing platform. Please see our planning page for details:

Preparing for your education visit

Last entry to the Zoo is one hour before the Zoo closes, please check opening times for London Zoo 

Supervision Guidance

Students aged 16 or under must be supervised at all times

The health and safety of our visitors is one of our main priorities. To help ensure this, all students must be supervised whilst in the Zoo. Those aged 16 or under must always be with a designated adult from your school. Students aged 17-18 do not need to be with an adult at all times, but school staff must be in the zoo and contactable during the trip.
To enable this, we offer:

  • One free supervising adult with every five students aged 16 or under (including EYFS)
  • One free supervising adult with every ten Post-16 & HE students
  • Free entry for 1-to-1 staff supporting SEND students

Please check out our behaviour guidelines for more information:

Behaviour guidelines for Schools and Community Groups

You can also find more information on organising a school visit by downloading a copy of the Department for Education's health & safety advice for schools.

    Two primary school students at London Zoo on a school trip
    Take your learning out of the classroom and into the wild

    Educational trips to London Zoo

    Everything you need to book an educational visit to London Zoo

    Asiatic lion Bhanu at London Zoo
    Activities and ideas to liven up your learning

    Supporting Learning Outside the Zoo

    Making sure you have everything you need to help young people explore the natural world and discover how they can work for wildlife.