
Jamie Christon
Chief Executive Officer, Chester Zoo
Jamie has been Principal Executive at Chester Zoo since 2013, initially as COO and then CEO from early 2021.
Download Register of InterestsHe led the zoo through the Islands development, the impact and recovery from the COVID pandemic and more recently the development of Heart of Africa and the opening of The Reserve Hotel. Chester Zoo is seen as a global conservation powerhouse and major visitor attraction, a national charity with its home in Cheshire but working in 21 countries around the world. It is the most visited zoo in the UK and a major employer. It has a long term “ One plan” sustainable strategy of growth and impact, a mission of “Preventing Extinction”.
He started his career in retail within national high street companies, before a period as a senior leader at Manchester Airports Group and an MD within Balfour Beatty Airports. Jamie is a director of Marketing Cheshire, and a governor of The Kings School in Chester. He was made a Fellow of Liverpool John Moore’s University in 2023, is a Trustee and Chair of the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums. In 2023 Jamie was commissioned as a Deputy Lieutenant within the County of Cheshire.