Rabbi Zalman Shimon Lent was born in England and grew up in Manchester, where his family have long been associated with rabbinic, communal and educational activities. His father - Dov (Barry) - served as a rabbi under the late Chief Rabbi Jacobovits, and his maternal grandfather was the late Rabbi Mendel Gurdus, who served the Manchester community as Rosh HaShochtim and as a much beloved synagogue rabbi for 42 years.
He received his education at the Manchester Grammar School, achieving distinction in Linguistics and in Craft, Design and Technology. After three years of Yeshivah study in Montreal, and three in Melbourne, he followed an intensive Semicha program, and was ordained by Rabbis Feitel Levin, Chair Gutnick, Elya Fisher (dean of the Gerrer Kollel in New York), and Rabbi Yeruslavski (rabbi of Kiryat Malachi).
Whilst at Yeshivah he participated in outreach activities with different communities and of varying age groups, especially over the Festival periods. In between terms he travelled widely to many Jewish communities to help run Jewish programs and services, to cities such as Wellington, New Zealand; Noumea, New Caledonia and Denver, Colorado.