Children have branded an aquarium “evil” for keeping 15 penguins captive in a basement enclosure without fresh air or daylight. The schoolboys and girls held placards urging Sea Life London Aquarium to “free the 15” from the attraction on London’s Southbank on Friday.

Leo Sordella-Savale, 11, said: “I feel awful because they shouldn’t be in the basement. They’re on fake ice with no natural light and no sky or sea.” When asked what he hoped members of the public learnt from the protest, he said: “I hope that people realise that it’s evil what they’re doing to penguins and all the animals in there being trapped in tanks.”

The Born Free Foundation’s junior youth ambassador added: “I hope that people don’t go to Sea Life or anything like this.” Speaking through a megaphone to assembled protesters, he added: “They are infinitely trapped to a life of misery. But we can try our best to at least get them a happy life.”

Leo wore a penguin costume alongside eight-year-old Rowan Fenwick and Naila Seetal, 11, for the demonstration. Naila, who is the Prime Minister of the UK’s Sir David Amess’ UK Children’s Parliament, said no one would take people and trap them in a basement without sunlight.

She added: “They deserve to have fresh air because that’s the only way that they can be happy. It’s not right for them to be trapped because no one would trap us so we have to make sure they are able to feel fresh air and have a happy life.”

Rowan said: “I feel sad for them because they have no windows in there and they can’t really swim.” 

The Daily Express has backed Born Free and Freedom for Animals’ calls for the animals to be moved to a more suitable enclosure.

A petition calling for them to be moved has amassed more than 12,000 signatures.

Twenty four cross-party MPs, dozens of animal welfare groups and celebrities have backed demands for the animals to be moved.

In the wild, gentoo penguins can dive up to 600ft and swim up to 22mph but their tiny 6ft to 7ft pool at Sea Life deprives them of their ability to express their basic natural behaviours of swimming and diving.

Campaigners also repeatedly warn that the Gentoos’ wild populations are deemed “stable” with over 750,000 adult individuals, meaning there is no justification in keeping them in captivity.

Sea Life London Aquarium (SLLA) has been contacted for comment on this protest.

A spokeswoman previously said: “The welfare of all the animals in our care is of paramount importance to us at Sea Life and we are committed to delivering the highest levels of care through our team of dedicated welfare experts, both internal and external.

“Sea Life conforms to all requirements under the Standards of Modern Zoo Practice by providing the relevant zoo licensing authorities with access to its animal records.

“This is in addition to regular visits including zoo licence inspections by these local authorities, alongside additional external inspectors and independent vets, who monitor animal welfare and data on an ongoing basis and will continue to do so.

“SLLA also carries out its own regular health checks on all the animals in its care, while an independent specialist vet also visits every two months for routine assessments, and can also be contacted daily with any other concerns.

“The Gentoo penguin habitat at SLLA was designed with help and advice from specialist vets. It provides an excellent balance of water and land for the penguins which enables them to express their normal behaviours and there is space for them to ensure they have sufficient privacy.

“As part of its overall mission, SLLA provides an opportunity to share the wonders of the natural world in an accessible manner. With the opportunity to educate more than a million people who visit SLLA from all around the globe each year to care for the world’s oceans and the marine life within it, we believe this is a hugely positive thing.”

To sign the petition to free the penguins, visit this page.