Why do I have to pay for my baby? – The Hen House

COVID-19 – what to expect

Play sessions are for 60 minutes or 90 minutes only and must be pre-booked online.

• We will be cleaning the soft play, role play area, café and other touch points in between play sessions.

• Only eight bookings will be taken per session to allow for social distancing measures.

• Prices are slightly higher than usual to allow us to operate at a much reduced and safe capacity.

• No cash will be accepted.

• Contact information will be taken at check-in for Test and Trace purposes.

• Temperatures will be taken upon arrival.

• You’ll need to confirm that no one in your party has experienced Covid-19 symptoms in the last week.

• Adults will be required to wear a mask whilst not eating or drinking at a table.

• You remain responsible for yourself and your children whilst on the premises.

• The cafe will be open but running a full menu.

• We cannot accept bookings for more than one household or support bubble.

• Parties are temporarily suspended.

• The balls in our ball pond have been replaced with washable cushions to increase cleanliness.

• We have temporarily removed harder to clean toys, such as the dolls house, to allow us to thoroughly clean all toys between play sessions.

• Our disco room is temporarily out of use whilst singing and dancing are prohibited by law

Our soft play prices as of 18th August 2020:
• 6 months to 1 year, £3 – 60 minute, £5 – 90 minutes
• 1 year and over, £6.95 – 60 minutes, £8.95 – 90 minutes

Wraparound Care Admissions policy

The Hen-House is open to all children between the age of 4-11 from Grayswood, Witley Infants and St Mary’s, Shackleford schools.

We operate the breakfast and after school clubs during Surrey term time.

All bookings are on a first come, first served basis.

A waiting list is in place for fully subscribed sessions, also operated on a first come, first served basis.

The Hen-House does not discriminate against any child on the grounds of sex, race, religion, colour or creed. Families, staff and volunteers are not excluded or discriminated against. Any guardians or children demonstrating behaviour that is discriminatory will be asked to leave.

Parents, guardians and carers will be asked to complete a Registration Form, which allows parents to give their requirements, collection password, child specific information and emergency contacts.

Wraparound Care Concerns and Complaints

We encourage parents to approach us as soon as they have a concern or complaint. This is because we believe we can ‘nip any potential issues in the bud’ before they become a real problem.

If this does not have a satisfactory outcome, or the problem recurs, the parent should make an appointment to see the manager or deputy as soon as possible. We keep a confidential Incident Report book which is completed by the staff. This is kept at each school.

If the matter is still not sorted out to parent satisfaction, the parent should again contact the manager. If the parent and manager cannot reach agreement, it might be helpful to invite an external mediator, one who is acceptable to both parties to listen to both sides and offer advice. A mediator has no legal powers but can help define the problem, review the action so far and suggest further ways in which it might be resolved.  The mediator will keep all discussion confidential. They will meet the parent and manager if requested and will keep an agreed written record of any meetings that are held, and of any advice s/he has given.

Parents can contact Ofsted on 0300 123 1231, or write to them at:
Applications, Regulatory and Contact (ARC) team
Ofsted
Piccadilly Gate
Store Street
Manchester
M12WD

What time are your play slots?

9am-10am (60 mins)

10:15am-11:45am (90 mins)

12:00pm-13:30pm (90mins)

2:15pm-3:15pm (60 mins)

3.30pm-5pm (90 mins)

Where’s the nearest parking?

The closest parking is the Waitrose car park which is access off of Haslemere High Street by turning left just before Brewers decorating shop. Alternatively, Chestnut Avenue and Tanner’s Lane car parks are both located within a 5-minute walk and are cheaper.

How do I find your entrance?

Our front entrance faces into the Waitrose car park. You won’t be able to access us from Lower Street so please go down the little ramp by the side of Meercuts barbers and we’re half way down the ramp on the left hand side, in between The Hair Chair and Fired Earth.

How much is it and how long can I stay?

We offer three 60 minute slots and two 90 minute slots everyday.

Babies: (6m-11m) £6.55 – 60 mins, £8.75 – 90 mins
Children: (1year+) £8.75 – 60 mins, £10.95 – 90 mins

Adults: £1.50 – 60 mins, £1.75 – 90 mins

If you’re not ready to leave you can extend your session. Just ask one of the team.

If you visit often, membership might be the most cost effective way to play.

I have complicated dietary requirements please can I bring my own food?

No, it wouldn’t be fair to follow one rule for one and one rule for another.

If you’re concerned, we recommend contacting us before your visit to talk through your options.

Why can’t I bring my own food?

Health and Safety is absolutely paramount at The Hen House and have a responsibility to our customers to ensure we know what food products are on the premises at all times. We pride ourselves on being a nut free environment and in order to make this claim we need to monitor what comes onto the premises.

Added to this, The Hen House is situated in a convenient, town centre location which means rent and rates are very high and margins very tight. We try our best to keep The Hen House affordable to all, but this relies on us making sales in in all parts of our business including the coffee shop.

What do I need to bring?

Please bring socks for you and your children, they are required to enter our soft play.

Why do I have to pay for my baby?

We appreciate that babies will interact less with the soft play equipment and that’s why they pay less to enter and are free when visiting with a sibling paying full price. However, our designated baby area and baby changing facilities cost money to maintain. We rely on café sales in order to keep our soft play operating and babies tend not to eat from our café so their entry costs contribute a little towards this.  Although tiny themselves they tend to come with a lot of stuff which takes up room which could be used by older children and therefore we feel it’s only fair to charge for their entry.

It may work out more cost effective for you to sign up to our membership packages. Baby memberships start from £20/month and includes unlimited entry. Find our more about memberships on our Book Now page.

What age can I start to visit from?

Our equipment is aimed at 0-8 year olds. If you’re bringing your baby for the first time we would recommend arriving before 10am or after 2pm as this is when we’re quietest.