A NGER as Noah's Ark Zoo Farm gets school trip thumbs-up, said the Evening Post.

The Government-backed Council for Learning Outside the Classroom has given a quality badge to the zoo as an accredited place for children to visit for their education.

But the British Humanist Association has protested that children will be exposed to religious dogma that seeks to discredit established scientific facts.

A spokesman for the zoo replied that religious beliefs are not forced on or taught to children as part of its education programme.

Their website does indeed have separate sections on education and creation/evolution. That is honest and yet disappointing.

It is a pity the approach to evolution is not more educationally sound, particularly as it says it aspires to an open, critical approach and wants to encourage discussion.

It asks if evolution and belief in God can be reconciled, but then suggests Christians can only accept a severely modified version of evolution combined with creationism.

It sees the Biblical accounts of creation and the flood as consistent with the evidence of science and history.

The zoo's name, Noah's Ark, is significant.

But the story of the flood and Noah's ark is about religious truth – the water representing the forces of chaos and evil which are the result of human wickedness. God saves Noah, his family and the animals because his nature is to save creation, not destroy it, in spite of his abhorrence of human greed and abuse. The rainbow represents the balance of sun and rain, without which life cannot flourish and is the sign of God's faithfulness.

It is perfectly possible to put forward a Christian argument for evolution and any respectable educational approach would do so. It would start by stating Darwin's ideas accurately and separating religious questions from scientific ones.

According to the zoo's spokesman, science has attempted to remove any notion of God from our understanding of life. That is only true of atheistic scientists like Richard Dawkins.

The zoo says it was set up "for education and to remind us of contemporary science that points to the creation plus evolution of the species." That really is not about education but advocating a particular religious dogma.

I am sure the zoo offers a very worthwhile experience for children of interacting with the animals and in the related educational programme.

But the council, in awarding the kite mark, says it offers viewpoints that challenge children's minds, which must refer to its views about evolution. If that is its view, it is failing in its duty to accredit good educational practice.