Hens for Hire

School Hen Keeping Specialist

Chickens for Schools with Hens for Hire

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We provide Chickens for Schools, Nurseries, Childcare Centres and Care homes for an opportunity to experience hen keeping and the benefits it brings to pupils whilst removing the worry and ongoing responsibility. Keeping hens at school helps connect young people with their environment, food and animals in both urban and rural surroundings. We provide you with the expertise, resources and information which are prepared by our teaching staff to make hen keeping in school easy, fun and rewarding.

Book Now to add hens to your setting.
Taking bookings for September 2023

Helping with the National Curriculum

Students can be fully involved in looking after the chickens at school without additional staffing time. Hens are a creative and distinctive aid to teaching the National Curriculum in areas such as Maths, English and Literacy, Art and Science, as well as offering a great time for students outside by ‘hen watching’ and caring for the hens.

In a post-Covid and lockdown environment, Recovery and Reconnection curriculum support helps pupils and staff adjust to our post covid normal. Being around hens outside and, if required, with social distancing, our hen hire experience adds to and supports all areas of learning, mental health and well-being.

As part of the hire package, you also get access to our online Chicken Club, packed with activities to support your hen-keeping journey, materials to assist with learning, and all Health & Safety support documents. It is an active club with resources added and updated regularly along with termly competitions with some EGGcellent prizes to boot.




Chickens for Schools, What We Offer

  • We offer a Bespoke and Individual Hire Service to suit your needs
  • We will install and set up the hen house & run
  • Provide you with 2 hens (we can add more hens)
  • Along with everything to look after and feed the hens, this includes all equipment and regular replenishments over the hire period
  • We will train your staff on all aspects of hen keeping
  • On call support 7 days a week
  • Learning materials which include lessons plans, presentations and worksheets created by our teaching staff. Along with posters, arts and crafts ideas and support from young enterprise related to hens and eggs-all part of our online Chicken Club.
  • Hire Periods to suit you from a term to a whole school year
  • At holiday times we will come and pick the hens up & return them at the start of term at your convenience
  • At the conclusion of the hire period all equipment and hens collected
  • We provided full risk assessments, we are fully insured and DBS checked
  • Option to purchase your Hen Package at the end of the hire period.

Why Pick Hens For Hire

  • Of course any school could get hens and go DIY, so why work with us?
  • A convenient hassle-free service
  • A professional, friendly and personal service
  • Flexible hire period
  • Fully insured, DBS checked and licensed for Animal Transport
  • DEFRA registered
  • Full support and training
  • Any health issues with the hens dealt with by us
  • Learning Materials & Access to our Online Chicken Club
  • Members Area Access

Our Pricing Policy

Depending on the distance from our HQ and hire period, our prices are bespoke, so please get in touch with us for a personal quotation along with the terms and conditions of hire.

Groups of schools in the same area booking together will receive a group discount.


Contact Hens For Hire



Animal Welfare Statement

The welfare of all the poultry we hire out is the core belief of our business. Hens for Hire support the view that all animals have a right to life free from cruel treatment and unnecessary suffering.

Hens for Hire recognise that animals are capable of feeling, capable of enjoying a state of well being and equally capable of suffering. Therefore Hens for Hire considers that the organisations hiring hens are responsible for ensuring that the welfare needs of the hens are met during the hire period.

Hens for Hire will ensure that whilst in our care the hens will receive, in line with the RSPCA’s 5 Freedoms:

  1. Freedom from hunger and thirst
  2. Freedom from discomfort
  3. Freedom from pain, injury and distress
  4. Freedom to behave normally
  5. Freedom from fear and distress which includes
    • The need for a suitable environment
    • For a suitable diet
    • To exhibit normal behaviour patterns
    • To have appropriate company
    • To be protected from pain, injury, suffering and disease
  6. Full training will be provided by Hens for Hire
  7. We reserve the right to remove any hens that are at risk of abuse at additional cost to the hirer

This statement does not cover every aspect of animal welfare, but it does aim to detail those areas that Hens for Hire considers important.

Hens for Hire support all current animal welfare legislation.

The Animal Welfare Statement will be reviewed regularly and if necessary revised from time to time to reflect changes in legislation and to address any changes in our working practices.



Customer Testimonials


Hens for Hire’ at Longwill School for Deaf Children- or ‘a little bit of country’ Longwill is a small Special school for Deaf children in Birmingham – landlocked and urban with many of our children living in the inner city with a high level of deprivation. For many years I have wanted to enhance our outdoor environment and particularly to give the children a real animal experience. Next problem… How nice does one have to be to a caretaker to persuade him to look after them in the holidays? Then I saw an advertisement for Hens for Hire! We’re off! The wonderful, children’s picture-book famer, Claire Peach, arrived at school with all the kit and two beautiful, ready- to- lay the next day (and they did!) fully vaccinated, beautiful chickens. They are called Henny and Penny ,they are lively, clucky, busy, not too smelly, fascinating to watch and to find out about…and the children love them and even better, do not tire of caring for them and getting the big reward of two eggs every day. We have a ‘year- group a week’ as hen monitors, we make graphs of their egg count, make mini-enterprises egg-selling weeks, write stories about their imagined adventures when they go away for their holidays, we make films about their care, we have the most engaging assemblies and ‘The Golden Egg Award’ for most creative egg use, and our sign language using pupils are able to fulfil all their language and Speaking and Listening requirements. But the best thing is….a bit like the grandchildren…Hens for Hire go home again to their other life in the holidays leaving me the guilt-free and happy!

Babs Day – Headteacher

Longwill School for the Deaf

We decided it would be fun and also a great tool to house chickens within our school grounds. We contacted Hens for Hire and discussed our ideas with them and within a few weeks our hens had arrived, staff trained and we had our first eggs! We have now had our two chickens for nearly a year, and I have to say how fantastic an experience this is for our children. The chickens are extremely easy to keep and enhance the children`s learning of life cycles, where our food comes from, and most importantly being responsible for looking after a living thing! They are also fabulous to use as a reward tool for children struggling with their behaviour. They love feeding the hens and collecting the eggs too! Some even enjoy cleaning them out, once or twice a week. I feel that having our hens has made a fantastic difference to our school and I would highly recommend keeping them to anyone.

Mrs Kerry Parker (Inclusions Mentor)

Springfield Junior School, Swadlincote

We are delighted with the service we receive from Hens for Hire. Claire is friendly, efficient and knowledgeable - the children talk fondly of 'The Chicken Lady.' The hens have contributed to working relationships, peer activities and our school ethos. It is a wonderful to see all the children passionate in the same interest. The hens have fitted effortlessly to our school routine and the school council thoroughly enjoy organising their care and teaching others how to care for them. We are excited for the future activities and learning opportunities.'

Kelly Armstrong

Minworth J & I School


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