The outings, over three end-of-summer-term days, gave children the chance to enjoy watching cheeky chimpanzees, gentle orang-utans, agile woolly monkeys, excitable gibbons and more, at the centre that offers a safe refuge for 250 rescued and endangered primates.

The outings, organised by Variety Wessex, took children from Beaucroft School in Wimborne, St Clements and St John’s C of E Infants School and Bethany School in Boscombe, Bournemouth, and the various Linwood School Campuses in Bournemouth and Poole to the centre, deep in the Dorset countryside. They travelled there on Laguna coaches.

Children enjoying their visit to Monkey World

The days out were thoroughly enjoyed by all the children, their teachers and support staff. Highlights were seeing the ring-tailed lemurs being fed, chimpanzees playing, orang-utans grooming each other and gibbons leaping about very noisily. There were also woolly monkeys that could hang from branches from the very tip of their strong tails and curious red-bellied Guenons that picked leaves to eat with their hands.

The outings were part of the “Variety Great Days Out” scheme that aims to give disadvantaged children positive memories.

Frances Cornelius, (volunteer) chair of Variety Wessex said:

A big thank you to Monkey World for agreeing to three trips instead of the normal one annual day. The children from all the schools had a marvelous time. Thank you Laguna coaches for bringing our children safely and efficiently, especially our favourite driver Andy Blake, who is hugely helpful on these special days.

Thank you too Hattie for amazing photographs that the children keep as wonderful memories of their day out. Thank you also Judy and Jenny who have been amazing by attending all three trips to Monkey World to ensure everything runs smoothly.

And, of course, a huge thank you to all those who have donated towards the cost of three wonderful days out for these incredible children.