Bring Yer Wellies is a truly unique experience in a natural setting for a ‘hands on’ outdoor learning engagement with nature.

We provide a whole range of educational visits and childrens’ parties in a unique outdoor countryside location in Hoghton, Lancashire.

Our aim is to introduce children to nature in a safe, comfortable environment whilst keeping them actively involved, letting their interest, curiosity and excitement provide them with memorable experiences and great educational opportunities.

We provide a stimulating learning environment, where activities meet the individual school and curriculum requirements aiming at Key Stages 1 & 2. Our educational activities focus predominantly on Science, Art, English, Humanities & Maths.

Our education programme is continually evolving. We now have an ‘all-weather’ outdoor archaeological dig site containing a variety of genuine Roman, & Medieval artefacts! We have also carried out Sutton Hoo, Ancient Greek, Stone Age, Viking and Dinosaur Digs !

We provide events for primary school children coming on a school visit, parents with their children for a birthday party adventure, families joining together for private parties. We help beavers, cubs & brownies to develop an understanding of nature and earn their activity badges.

The activities we provide are influenced by the age of the children, the National Curriculum, and the chosen theme – everything is tailor-made to give the best experience possible for those attending.

We’re delighted to help provide engaging activities for disabled visitors. We have wheelchair access throughout the premises, and we organise sensory stimulating activities for our disabled groups to help encourage increased interaction and participation. We adapt the activities to suit each child’s individual abilities, so everyone can make the most of their visit.

We are at Ricroft Nurseries in Hoghton, near Preston in Lancashire. Ricroft Nurseries is commercial nursery, established in 1936, and placed in the heart of the Lancashire countryside.

We have a large outdoor space, which incorporates woodland, a pond, and access to a field, and the nursery is well-equipped with greenhouses to cater for events when the good old British weather does its thing!

We’re here most days, and we love having guests, so if you’re interested in coming to have a look around to help plan your educational visits in advance, please call us to come and see what we’re up to, on with and all about.

Hello Everybody! I’m Bertie Big Boots from Bring yer Wellies and I’ve so much to tell you about EVERYTHING! These are some of the things we’ll be doing when you come…

• Planting & growing
• Rocks, Fossils & Soils
• Field to Fork
• Native Americans
• Pirates
• Leaf rubbing
• Worm Studies
• Bug hunting
• Dinosaurs
• Map reading
• Looking at plants for food
• Studying lifecycles
• Realistic recycling
• Archaeology, learning about the Romans, Greeks, Stone Age, Vikings
• Renewable energy
• Pond dipping in the amphibian pond
• Treasure hunts in the woodland
• Learning about vegetable gardens
• Composting
• Identifying trees

what’s more…. there’s a greenhouse that’s a classroom and tractor tyres to sit on… another greenhouse to plant in where the horses watch us… a huge pond… with an island… and pirates… and a woodland to build a den in… and…! Too much for one visit and too messy to do in a classroom, so bring yer wellies and come and do it here – IT’LL BE FUN!

We keep ourselves fully up-to-date on the requirements of the National Curriculum, so school trips are sure to be both fun and educational!

We use the National Curriculum to guide all of our activities, and we make sure that every event we host is age-specific, catering for the level of learning each child is at.

Our activities vary throughout the year. We work with the seasons to organise activities that take advantage of the diverse weather we get throughout the year.

Each school event begins with a pre-site visit from the Educational Officer or Teacher, where we work together to develop a programme that fully relates to current classroom work.

Because we offer such a diverse range of learning experiences, we’re always able to create bespoke visits that perfectly meet the school’s curriculum, helping kids learn the subjects being taught at the time.

We listen to your thoughts and ideas and produce a specific package in order that we can share our wealth of knowledge with pupils and adults alike.

We organise the day to give the most time possible to learning, and making the best use of our unique setting and resources. Only a short time will be spent on refreshments or meals.

We charge a total of £295.00 for school groups, based on a 4 hour visit for a maximum of 30 children.  This includes the use of all our resources and the planting activities.

You’ve done the indoor play, bouncy castles & children’s entertainers – so if you’re looking for something different for your son’s, daughter’s or grandchild’s birthday party, you’ve come to the right place.

There are no TV’s or computer games here, just a great mixture of undercover and outdoor (mostly outdoor) educational & environmental fun activities.

Fancy going on a woodland mini beast hunt? Or searching for pond life? How about treasure hunting with pirates, or playing at cowboys and Indians? Rumour also has it there’s a trail of elves and fairies to follow through our woodland…

Whatever your childrens’ fantasies, we can help their imaginations run wild… and perhaps let the kids run wild too!

Every child attending needs to have an adult present, ensuring that every memorable experience is an experience shared, and remembered for a long time afterwards!

Send us an email or give us a call to find out what themed birthday packages we can offer to suit you!

Give your kids the chance to be mini archaeologists!

As of November 2013, we have a purpose-built, all-weather dig site filled with over 30 different,  historical artefacts.

We give the children hard hats and high-viz jackets and set them out to uncover objects from pre-Roman, Roman Medieval, and Post Medieval eras, kindly provided by Canterbury Archaeological Trust. They’ll take the artefacts to our incident room, where they’ll have everything they need to record, identify and analyse their findings!

News is spreading fast about our dig site, so we’re now able to offer digs if you’re studying  ‘The Ancient Greeks’, the ‘Stone Age’, ‘Vikings’ and ‘Dinosaurs’.

Reverend David Dickinson BA, MA, PGD, PGCE, Cert Couns.   instigated the idea of organising archaeological digs for school children at ‘Bring Yer Wellies’.  His BA is in Biblical Studies and Archaeology and we are delighted that he leads the digs and imparts his knowledge to the children and the grown-ups!  He’s also a good friend and happens to be Fergus’s godfather too.

We’re delighted to be able to help people have such memorable experiences at Bring Yer Wellies. Here’s just some of the feedback we’ve had so far:

“I recently took my year 1 and 2 children to ‘Bring Yer Wellies’ and we had a very exciting and extremely memorable day.  Melissa and Nigel could not have been more helpful in their flexibility to invent a whole programme for the day to suit our needs, and to also enthuse the children in some fabulous outdoor learning experiences on the day.  Speak to them and I am sure they will come up with something to meet your needs! “

– Mr Atkins

“I took my y3 class here yesterday to do an archaeological dig based on a Roman theme. The staff were outstanding. Knowledgeable, enthusiastic and fun. We learned lots and had a great time. Would thoroughly recommend this place to teachers.”

– Miss Watts

“I had my 9th birthday party at ‘Bring Yer Wellies’. It was fantastic! We played lots of games and my dad got dressed up as an old GRANNY! My best friend wants her party there. My favourite part was when my godfathers ended up in the stocks and we threw wet sponges at them. SPLASH!”

– Ellie Driver

“Having children that are full of energy, I wanted a really exciting action packed birthday party that was an experience as well as a celebration. ‘Bring Yer Wellies’ did not disappoint. From the start Melissa’s enthusiasm was infectious and I knew that my son’s party was going to be great. It was filled with outdoor action, sunshine, sandy beaches, pirates, treasure hunts and laughter. From start to finish the kids were mesmerised, entertained and educated. I would recommend ‘Bring Yer Wellies’ without hesitation. A children’s dream birthday party!!”

– Leanne Whitehead

”Bring Yer Wellies is the type of place where the children have great fun and the adults get to relive their happy childhood memories-den building, pond dipping, treasure hunts, getting muddy, wet and downright silly!!! Melissa, Nigel and Fergus were a great team, who used their skills and talents to make our son’s birthday party one to remember. For us, it was the perfect antidote to the run of the mill parties we have experienced! The true magic of the party rested with the interaction Melissa promoted between the parents and the children – we had as much fun as the children did, dressing up in themed outfits, falling over during a sack race and racing around the grounds like headless chickens. There were some unexpected surprises to make the day extra exciting but we’ll leave those for you to discover!! Everyone who came commented on what a fab time they had. Parties seem to have lost their way but, at Bring Yer Wellies, they seem to have brought forward the best of the past and present to create THE party for the future!”

– Rosie Bolton

“Behind every memorable party is a great host and Melissa and Nigel at ‘Bring Yer Wellies’ were truly fantastic with the children from the moment we arrived. The pirate theme activities we chose for our son’s 5th birthday party were well planned, engaging and fun,fun,fun. It was a pleasure to actually participate in the challenges and nature based activities, instead of being just a bystander. A truly brilliant and different idea for a birthday party that our little (and big) guests still chatter excitedly about weeks later.”

– Sarah, Chris, Luca and Tilly

“A very belated thank you for a fantastic day out for our group of Belarussian children. You really pushed the boat out for them and everyone had a great day. The host families were also delighted to receive the lovely pots they made at Fired 4U filled with herbs. They made a special thank you and are still flourishing. Many thanks.”

– Joan Hubbersty

We’re a family team of three, full of the experience, enthusiasm and skills needed to make sure every visit to Bring Yer Wellies is a unique experience.

Nigel is a Design Engineer by profession and runs the nursery business A.R. Peter & Son (est. 1952). An experienced commercial grower, he’s spent much of his life working with the ‘great outdoors’, giving him respect and passion for the countryside and the honesty and richness of nature.

Melissa was the Events Manager at Hoghton Tower for 10 years. She has over 25 years experience of Tourism, Hospitality and Marketing, having organized concerts, theatrical evenings, children’s festivals, family celebrations and private events for foreign dignitaries and celebrities. She’s got the know-how to make every event special and every visitor feel like the guest of honour.

Our technical advisor (Fergus): Our ‘almost 13’ year old son Fergus is being taught by example to have understanding, admiration & respect for plants, animals & nature. He’s learning to respect the balance of the countryside and all it provides:- food, water, shelter, building materials, renewable sources of fuel & energy. He’s our key adviser for making sure every child’s visit is fun!

To view images of what we’ve been up to, on with and all about then please click on the following link to ‘prezi’.  Wait a couple of moments for the presentation to load and then press the icon at the bottom right for ‘full screen’ viewing.  To navigate your way through the presentation at your own speed, keep pressing the right or left arrow to move forwards or backwards.  When finished, press the escape button.

http://prezi.com/qi3xtpwfx8cz/bring-yer-wellies-the-story-so-far/

We have  been featured in the Lancashire Evening Post, read our article here!
Lancashire Evening Post – Bring Yer Wellies

A feature from today’s  Lancashire Telegraph 1st October 2013
‘Child holds army-themed birthday party for Help the Heroes’ –  Click here to read

A feature from today’s  Lancashire Evening Post 14th October 2013
See some of the pictures from one of our Birthday parties! – Click here to view

A feature from today’s Lancashire Evening Post 6th January 2014  See the children from Coupe Green re-enacting the ‘Great Fire of London’ – LEP Coupe Green Primary School

See the video, some of our happy customers from 2013! –http://flipagram.com/f/H89pZMoqaI

A feature from today’s Lancashire Telegraph 21st January 2014 Educational Feature

A feature from today’s Lancashire Evening Post 14th March 2014 LEP Coupe Green Archaeology

A feature from the Lancashire Evening Post on 18th July 2014  Life Size Dinosaur!

A feature in Lancashire Life March edition 2016  http://ow.ly/ZrHyl

Since November 2013 we have been accredited with the ‘Learning Outside the Classroom Quality Badge’. This accreditation is awarded by The Council for Learning Outside the Classroom, which was launched in April 2009 and which is the national leading voice on everything to do with learning outside the classroom issues. It is the recognised badge for all organisations providing quality learning outside the classroom experiences.

Ricroft Nurseries is private and exclusive. There will be a site visit arranged with the Education Visits Co-ordinator or Teacher prior to each visit, and risk assessments are provided.

On the day of the visit, the teacher responsible rings ahead when travelling and upon arrival the group is greeted at the site entrance gate and shown to the car park, the gates to the site are then closed. There will only be one school class visit or party on site at any time.

We have written Risk Assessments for each activity, which we will provide you with. Risk assessments will be reviewed regularly and adjusted in order to ensure proper health and safety procedure at all times.  An additional Covid19 Risk Assessment has also been carried out in line with government guidelines.

We provide a safe and secure environment in which children can interact and explore rich and diverse learning and development opportunities. Most importantly, procedure at Bring Yer Wellies is about enabling things to happen safely and responsibly, while never shutting down opportunities to learn, and to have fun!