CHICKENS are checking in to luxury boarding coops near Tewitfield while their owners fly the nest on holiday.

Enterprising Carnforth teenager Sam Jones, 18, can accommodate up to 120 pampered poultry at Chickens on Holiday, his new business venture at Greenlands Farm Village.

During their £1-a-night vacation, hens can expect plenty of corn, clean water, grass, warmth, shelter and fresh North Lancashire air.

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Sam, an operations supervisor at Greenlands, has been inundated with inquiries since placing a 'Chickens on Holiday' poster on a lamppost at Burton-in-Kendal.

“It’s gone quite wild,” said the former Carnforth High School pupil. “I wanted to try something different and I’ve grown up with chickens all my life.”

Chef Jamie Oliver and model Liz Hurley are among the estimated 500,000 British households enjoying free-range eggs from their own back-garden brood.

The hobby has surged in popularity, and Sam said: “There’s a market for this because when people go away on holiday they might not have a neighbour close enough, or a family member, who can let the chickens out early in the morning,” Sam borrowed a field at Greenlands after coming up with his ‘hen hotel’ idea last year.

“I had to set up new runs and make sure everything was safe so that Mr Fox couldn’t get in; just making sure everything was clean, tidy and ready.”

Sam collects the eggs each day, setting them aside for the hens’ owners on their return.

He added that his parents, Bryn and Helen Jones, thought the venture was ‘fantastic’.

He hopes to build a pond so he can extend a warm welcome to waterfowl such as ducks and geese, at £2 a night.

To find out more, visit www.hireithatchit.co.uk