A TOURISM group in Worcestershire is encouraging owners of hotels and B&Bs to give battery hens a new home.

The Home A Hen scheme, run by tourism and marketing partnership Destination Worcestershire linked to Worcestershire County Council, is looking to provide battery hens with a free range lease of life.

It also gives their new owners the chance to offer their guests fresh eggs laid by their own chickens.

The scheme is backed by the Battery Hen Welfare Trust, which will supply the hens to homes they deem appropriate.

Destination Worcestershire is also working with a company called Omlet, which designed the Eglu, a contemporary chicken coop which has been created to make keeping chickens simple and rewarding.

The tourism group is searching for a member venue in the county to be the first to take part in the Home A Hen scheme.

The chosen venue will receive a free Eglu and chickens, together with advice on hen husbandry.

Rod Nipper, from Destination Worcestershire, said: “An English breakfast with locally-sourced produce is very much a part of a stay at a B&B or small hotel.

“And what could be better than eggs from the establishment’s very own chickens? You know with absolute certainty the provenance of the produce.”

Cliff Little, health and safety officer for the county council, is also involved in the scheme.

He advises on the basic rules when it comes to home-grown eggs. Any venue that is a member of Destination Worcestershire and keen to pilot the Home A Hen scheme should send an e-mail to VCarman@worcestershire.gov.uk.