Chester Zoo Youth Network
Our mission is preventing extinction, but we can’t do this alone! We’re committed to empowering 10 million people to live more sustainably by building skills and knowledge, giving them the confidence to take action for nature. Working with young people is vital to this mission.
Thanks to our funders, including The Westminster Foundation, we’re able to work with even more young people to remove barriers to accessing nature and conversation and allow us to bring diverse young voices into the conservation sector.
As part of this work, we’ve launched our first ever Chester Zoo Youth Network and events programme, with the aim to bring together passionate wildlife lovers, curious conservationists and young changemakers for a greener wilder future.
We’ll offer an exciting programme of inclusive, accessible and engaging events and experiences designed with young people in mind. We hope that these opportunities will allow like-minded people to meet and have fun, as well as share, inspire and build confidence to take action for nature, or even seek out conservation careers.
In collaboration with our Chester Zoo Youth Board and local youth groups, we’ve been developing a programme of in-person and online events, training and activities for young people aged 12-25 to get involved in at weekends, evenings and holidays.
What is the Chester Zoo Youth Network?
In collaboration with our Chester Zoo Youth Board and local youth groups, we’ve created a programme of events, training and activities for young people aged 12-25 to get involved in.
The network can offer you…
• Opportunities to meet like-minded people, have fun, share and inspire each other to make positive change.
• A programme of inclusive, accessible and engaging events and experiences designed with young people.
• Training and workshops to develop skills and build confidence to take action for nature, or seek out conservation careers.
• Sign up and keep up to date with the latest youth network news and upcoming events in a bi-monthly newsletter. The Youth Network is for young people aged 12-25 but due to national regulations you need to be at least 13 to sign up to this newsletter. If you’re 12, please ask someone over the age of 13 to sign up on your behalf.
Chester Zoo Youth Network Events
We have an exciting programme of inclusive, accessible and engaging events and experiences designed and delivered with young people in our network and Youth Board.
Join us for youth events at the zoo. Connect to nature, meet like-minded young people, find out about conservation careers and build the skills to take conservation action.
A huge thanks goes to The Westminster Foundation and The National Lottery Heritage Fund, our amazing funders that enable us to offer lots of free events and training.
Sat 14th November: 10:00am - 3:00pm. Conservation and Social Action Skills event.
Develop your confidence, leadership and transferable skills to enable you to plan and develop your own conservation and social action projects or campaigns. You will participate in workshops to develop confidence with public engagement, discover ways to identify, plan and deliver your own campaigns or projects for positive change. You will also meet and hear from inspirational young people who have successfully taken action and made a positive impact. This event is suitable for 16-25 year olds.
£20 per ticket - Your ticket includes the event, zoo entry, lunch and snacks.
There are a limited tickets available to support young people to attend if cost is a barrier. Please email us to enquire - youthnetwork@chesterzoo.org
Changemakers Youth Volunteering Programme: 12 week course blocks from Autumn 2026 to 2027
From Autmn and throughout 2027 we are running the Changemakers Youth Volunteering programme. This exciting 12-week programme gives young people the opportunity to complete the Conservation Changemakers Toolkit while spending time out and about in the zoo, developing and delivering a nature-based project of their own design.
The programme can also be used towards completing the Volunteering section of the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award, making it a fantastic opportunity to gain new skills, boost confidence, and enhance future applications.
Some blocks will be for specific age ranges.
Email volunteers@chesterzoo.org to find out more and dates!
Environmental Leadership course for 16-25yrs: 5 sessions from Sat 20th Feb 2027 - 12 June 2027 10:30am - 3:30pm.
Develop your leadership and transferable skills with a qualification in ‘Leading a project for positive change, Level 3’. This course is delivered over four Saturdays at Chester Zoo and includes planning and delivering your own or group project for positive change. It’s a great way to develop transferable skills, build your CV, gain experience and confidence taking action for nature and meet likeminded young people. Suitable for young people 16-25 years. Free funded event, booking is essential (around 20 spaces). See examples from previous courses - Environmental Leadership Courses at Chester Zoo | Chester Zoo.
Sat 20th Feb, Sat 13 March, Sat 17 April, Sat 15 May 2027 and Sat 12 June 2027. Please attend all sessions as part of a 5 session course. All sessions are 10.30am to 3.30pm. Booking available soon.
Conservation Careers event for 12-25yrs. Sat 6th March at Chester Zoo, 10.30am onwards.
It’s Careers Week! Find out about the diversity of conservation careers, meeting a range of different zoo staff and exploring a mini careers fair. There will be a workshop to support you to develop your CV writing skills and mini mock interviews to practice your communication skills. The event starts at 10.30am. After the event you will have access to the zoo and a self-guided programme of careers activities around the zoo.
Suitable for young people 12-25 years. Young people under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult during this session due to the mix of 12-25 year olds.
This event is free to access and funded by The Westminster Foundation to enable more young people to access nature and development opportunities. Booking available soon.
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Please note for events with mixed ages (e.g. 12 to 25 year olds together) under 16’s must be accompanied by an over 18 year old. Some events are for specific age ranges only (e.g. 16- 25 year olds or 14-17 year olds).
If you have any questions email us at youthnetwork@chesterzoo.org.
Volunteering and gaining experience
- Chester Zoo Networks for Nature, digital newsletter (with upcoming practical events) Sign up here
- Youth Volunteering, Chester Zoo - 14-16 year olds - Next recruitment In Spring 2026 Find out more
- Visitor Engagement Volunteering, Chester Zoo - 17 yrs +. Recruitment when spaces available.
- RECORD, Cheshire - (Biological recording, events engagement and more) Find out more
- RSPB volunteering - (Bird conservation focus, volunteering remote and in-person) Find out more
- RSPB events - Find out more
- The Wildlife Trust – all region volunteering - Find out more
- Cheshire Wildlife Trust – Find out more
- Lancashire Wildlife Trusts - Find out more
- Merseyside Biobank - (Volunteering and gaining sector experience - Data and biological record, biological recording, GIS) Find out more
- North Merseyside Amphibian and Reptile Group (NMARG UK )(volunteering in-person) Find out more
Youth Voice and governance
- Chester Zoo Youth Board – Recruitment once per year- Usually winter. Find out more
- RSBP Youth Council - Find out more
- Wildlife Trusts Youth Council - Find out more
- National Museums Liverpool - Youth Engagement Forum - Find out more
Special interest groups
- Merseyside & West Lancashire Bat Group (MWLBG) - (Talks and monitoring surveys) Find out more
- Lancashire & Cheshire Entomological Society - (Talks, workshops and webinars) Find out more
- Liverpool Botanical Society – (Talks and events) - Find out more
These opportunities will be updated every few months, currently focusing mostly Cheshire and Liverpool and will soon expand across the North West.
This is part of an Environmental Leadership project and will develop over the coming months to share more opportunities and sign posted organisations. Last updated November 2025.
Share your thoughts to help us develop this development opportunities section by filling in this form.
"On Saturday 3 August, we held our first ever youth social event. Our aim was to create a sense of community, so we were delighted to hear that the group felt inspired and more connected to the zoo’s mission. The experience included a special behind the scenes tour and the chance to meet some of our invertebrate experts to find out about our incredible conservation work to save species."
Lyndon, one of our Youth Board members who supported the social event.
Created with young people, for young people.
Accessible and inclusive, bringing youth voice into the conservation space, all while learning new skills.
If you'd like to keep up to date with the latest youth network news and upcoming events sign up to our Youth Network newsletter here. (The box below is for the main Chester Zoo newsletter).
The Youth Network is for young people aged 12-25 but due to national regulations you need to be at least 13 to sign up to this newsletter. If you’re 12, please ask someone over the age of 13 to sign up on your behalf.