Early years staff and children create a Summer Stampede to support Chester Zoo

Kids Planet, which now includes Kids Allowed, has launched a timely summer fundraising campaign to help support the UK’s number one family attraction, Chester Zoo.

Kids Planet, which includes Jeffrey’s Corner nurseries in Springhead and nearby Dukinfield, has acted due to the Zoo's significant losses since Covid-19 and its drastic restrictions on visitors for the foreseeable future.

Aptly named Kids Planet Summer Stampede, this fundraising campaign will enable this nursery group to give financial support by adopting as many animals as it can.

To do this, 7,000 children - aged two to five – will be collecting sponsorship as they walk, stomp, hop and leap a collective 1,700 miles.

Kids Planet CEO Clare Roberts explains the thinking around this campaign.

She said: “We currently have 52 nurseries based in UK, with many located within easy travelling distance of Chester Zoo.

"It’s an incredibly popular attraction for us, our staff and many of our families.

"Its recent plight, due to lockdown and reduced numbers of visitors, struck a chord with our staff and parents and so we came up with this idea.

"Since launching earlier this month, we reached our first target for £2,000 in the first ten days, so we’ve set ourselves an ambitious target of £20,000 and extended our fundraising activities across July and August."

Kids Planet will also be sharing a survey with Chester Zoo which will include asking children what their favourite wild animal is and why.

Each nursery will conduct its own fun poll and the results will be used during the adoption selection process at the end of the Summer Stampede fundraising campaign at the end of August.

For those families who are not part of Kids Planet, but want to help support Chester Zoo, they can simply get involved by reading the Chester Zoo Summer Stampede blog post on the Kids Planet website where they will find all the details including a downloadable sponsorship form.

Older siblings are also encouraged to join in as and help their younger brothers and sisters when it can be fitted around, or form part of, their home-schooling.

Chester Zoo currently employs over 500 devoted staff to provide quality care for its 35,000 animals.

As a conservation charity, it is 97% funded by its 2 million visitors a year and generous donations.

Due to Covid-19, the 12-week lockdown - and now radical restriction on daily visitors - there is a shortfall of £1.6 million a month.

Head of Conservation Education and Engagement, Charlotte Smith, is delighted to receive such love and support from families during this time.

She said: "Thank you SO much for supporting us with your Kids Planet Summer Stampede.

"It really means the world to us that you want to support Chester Zoo at this time so that we can continue our crucial work in preventing extinction of amazing animals and plants through our science, conservation and education work.

"The love, the passion and the energy shown by so many people all over the UK, has completely humbled us."

To support this campaign you can make a donation or get involved by visiting Kids Planet’s Summer Stampede crowdfunding page.

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