Educational Visits FAQs

Trentham is in the heart of Staffordshire with excellent transport links. For more information, visit our How to find us page here

We have extensive car parking facilities, including charging ports for electric vehicles and coach parking and drop off points within walking distance of the Visitor Centre. We also have a dedicated coach drop-off area within the car park, please follow the signs on arrival. On arrival it is advised that you head straight to the visitor centre (main entrance to the gardens) to let the Trentham team know you have arrived.

Trentham Gardens is 182 acres (which is also the the entirety of the fenced beaver enclosure, making it the largest in the UK). The gardens are part of the wider Trentham estate comprising 725 acres of land.

The estate contains a range of valuable and biodiverse natural habitats including, the Trentham Lake, a section of the river Trent, grassland, heathland, wood pasture and woodland. As well a retail village and numerous additional visitor attractions and facilities.

£6 per child/learner for self-led programmes and £8 per child/learner for ranger-led programmes (adults are free within school’s supervision ratio) *

The cost of the education programmes does not include additional paid for site attractions/facilities such as the train or boat.

*Additional adults are charged at the standard adult entrance fee to the gardens (£13 per adult).

At Trentham, we appreciate that often the biggest cost for schools to undertake field trips is the cost of transport. We have a large car park and capacity to offer this option, please contact us for more information and to discuss the details.

We have no minimum number for group sizes, but do have a minimum charge for groups to ensure financial viability.

Self-led programmes that we offer have no minimum number of participants required.

The minimum number of participants for our ranger-led programmes is 8. We can cater for smaller groups on request, but the minimum charge would be for 8 active participants.

We invoice for the full cost of site visits once we have received your completed booking form, which confirms your booking.

We do request that invoices are paid in full before the scheduled date of your visit.

Any invoices unpaid after the scheduled date of your visit will incur an additional admin charge of 20% the total cost of your invoice.

We do not currently limit the numbers of children or learners that can access the site, but a group of more than 2 classes (approximately 60 children), would take more time to plan and provide staff cover, please contact our staff team for more information.

A boat cruise on our electric catamaran Miss Elizabeth, or a train journey on our miniature train can be arranged, please contact us for more details.

Both the boat cruise and miniature train are dependent on the time of year and staff availability.

We have site and activity specific risk assessments which can be provided on request.

In addition, if you and your colleagues need to access the site prior to your visit to complete your setting’s own risk assessment documentation, this can be arranged.

Trentham has a range of retail and hospitality options with the Shopping Village, as well as two cafes within the gardens. There is also a variety of free to use visitor attractions; large adventure playground, barefoot walk trail, Hide and Speak maze and the Italian Gardens.

In addition, there are seasonally available paid for attractions on site, such as the disc golf course, miniature train, and the boat.

Trentham Gardens is home to a thriving family of five Eurasian Beavers, 3 of which were translocated to the site in March 2023, living wild within the gardens in the large, fenced enclosure (as part of a licensed reintroduction project). The beavers are generally nocturnal in habit but can potentially be seen at any time of the day, but early mornings and late evenings are good times to spot the beavers. You will be able to spot lots of signs of beaver activity around the lake.

Yes, after taking part in a paid for educational programme (either self-led or ranger-led) you are welcome to stay on within the garden to explore and enjoy with your learners at your own pace. This does not include additional paid for site attractions or facilities.