Booking terms and conditions

Applications for places

Our booking procedure is as follows:

1. Schools submit a booking enquiry form
2. The Centre send the school an official offer
3. Schools have 28 days, after receipt of their official offer, within which to return their 'Confirmation of Booking' form.

NOTE:

i) The 28 day period is to allow schools to consult with parents, to 'firm up' their numbers, as schools will be financially committed to the numbers they return on this form.
ii) Schools may reduce the number of places they wish to book on their Confirmation of Booking form, without any penalty.
iii) If schools wish to increase the number of places they wish to book on the Confirmation of Booking form, they must contact the centre first, to ensure that the additional places can be accommodated.

Applications should be received by the Centre no later than 31 January preceding the academic year within which you wish to book, to be considered in the initial round of allocations.

An application cannot be secured until a booking form and payment have been received and acknowledged by the Centre on the confirmation of booking form, in accordance with the conditions below.

Allocation policy

The following allocation policy is a ‘desirable outcome’ and will be used to guide decisions in the interest of fairness. However when allocating places to schools, our priority is to fill the centre in order for this self-funded service to remain financially viable. Our ‘break even’ target is 100 children per week.

Where possible, places will be allocated to schools that have applied by 31st January, on the following prioritised basis: 

• schools that accepted a booking in the previous year that was not their first choice
• schools that were unsuccessful in their applications last year
• schools that booked a place within the last two years
• other Hampshire, Portsmouth or Southampton local authority schools
• schools from other areas or authorities

If booking forms and initial deposit cheques are not received at the Centre within 28 days, then these slots may be offered to other schools.

Schools that apply after 31st January will be offered any slots not filled following the above process.

Prices for 2025-26

Pupils

Charge per pupil for a standard Monday to Friday visit

Zone 1 (1 April 2026 to 22 July 2026)	Zone 2 (1 September 2025 to 30 November 2025 and 1 February 2026 to 30 March 2026)	Zone 3 (1 December 2025 to 31 January 2026)
£282	£260	£229

For visits of less than five days (Monday to Friday) the charge will be calculated as fifths of the above charges. For example, for a three day visit the charge will be three fifths of the above.

Staff

• Resident visiting staff are accommodated free of charge at a staff / pupil ratio of 1:12, or 2 free places per activity group of up to 36 children.
• Additional free staff places could be offered to enable the inclusion of children who require 1:1 support to enable them to attend. This is subject to agreement by the Head of Centre. There are a finite number of staff beds available, so contact the Centre as soon as possible if additional staff are required.
• Any extra staff, that can be accommodated, will be charged at the child’s rate, unless by special arrangement with the Centre.

Payment

Schools will be charged for the number of places booked, unless any shortfall in numbers can be taken up by another school

Initial deposit

A non-returnable deposit of £250 is required within 28 days of receipt of your booking offer slip. This payment will be secured through the issue of an internal trading document for Hampshire County Council schools. For non-Hampshire County Council schools it should be in the form of a cheque made payable to Hampshire County Council which must accompany your confirmation of booking form.

Interim payment

10 weeks before the date of your visit, we will issue an internal trading document or invoice for 25% of the total projected cost of your trip, based on the numbers you initially booked.

Final payment

An internal trading document or external invoice will be raised post-visit for the outstanding balance, based on initial numbers booked plus any additional costs (visitor meals, increase in number of children, etc) that may have been incurred less the initial deposit and interim payment. This must be paid upon receipt.

Refunds

Any child who returns home for medical reasons (confirmed by our Welfare Assistant) will be refunded for meals not taken.

Any child who returns home for reasons of homesickness or ill-discipline will not be refunded.

Cancellation

Cancellation prior to acceptance of our booking offer, or within 28 days of receipt of this offer, whichever is sooner, incurs no penalty.

Cancellation following acceptance of our booking offer incurs full-cost penalty unless another school takes up the places you have booked.

Visitors

No charge is made for visiting head teachers. Other occasional visiting staff will be charged for meals and refreshments consumed and for any overnight accommodation at the following rates:

• overnight accommodation £20.00 (per night)
• breakfast £6.00
• lunch £7.00
• evening meal £8.00
• other refreshments (drinks, biscuits, fruit etc) are costed individually

Any personal visitors must report to Centre staff on arrival

Purchases

Educational consumables used by children in residence (worksheets, art materials etc.) are not charged for, but items taken by staff for use back in school will be billed. Prices on application.

Extra items purchased by visiting staff for personal use will be charged individually on the Friday morning.

Conduct

The discipline and conduct of your school will be the responsibility of the teacher in charge from that school. The Centre reserves the right to: 

• send home any child who is a danger to themselves or others through poor behaviour or illness. Schools are advised to have procedures in place should such an event arise
• demand payment for wilful damage to property or equipment. Genuine accidents may not be charged for

Insurance

Liability for loss, damage or injury is only accepted by Hampshire County Council if resulting from negligence by the County Council, its servants or agents.

We recommend that you take out school journey insurance to cover risks of accident, illness, loss of personal belongings or cancellation. Your local authority can often provide this for a small fee.