SSEN team gives animal rescue zoo a helping hand

A team of ten volunteers from Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) recently escaped from their office to lend a hand at a zoo that provides a new home for rescued animals.

Five Sisters Zoo in West Lothian plays host to over 180 species of animal from around the world, including four lions and three European brown bears which were rescued from travelling circuses.

The team from SSEN’s electricity transmission division got involved in landscaping the zoo’s new Japanese Garden, which provides an additional peaceful space for its visitors to enjoy. They gave their help via SSEN’s Be the Difference programme, which gives every employee the opportunity to offer a day of their time to a community or charity cause of their choice.

SSEN Engineer Abdallah Abdaelbaset said:

“Five Sisters Zoo plays an essential role, offering a safe and natural environment for animals that have been rescued from poor conditions or have nowhere else to go. To continue its important work, it relies on the support of the public and of volunteers.

“The enclosures that the zoo provides are crucial to giving the animals the space, stimulation and security they need. It was great that a big team of us were able to come together out of our own normal environment to get a range of jobs done to maintain and improve their visitor facilities. Hopefully it all helps the zoo’s own dedicated team to do even more for the welfare of the animals.”

More details about Five Sisters Zoo are available at www.fivesisterszoo.co.uk. It is open to the public every day except Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, with winter opening hours from 10am until 5pm.

The SSEN team from left to right: John Hillis, Graham Brown, Kayleigh Queen, Candy Thorp, Jocelyn Doherty, Andrew McManus, Abdallah Abdaelbaset, Emma Coyle, Said Olatokunbo and Saiful Rahman