Hidden Horizons starts crowdfunding campaign to raise £20,000 and secure future

Hidden Horizons was founded in 2013 and over the past six years it has delivered sessions to more than 10,000 school pupils and to thousands of people attending public events.

It also offers a wide range of outdoor activities including fossil hunting, star-gazing, bushcraft, forest schools, beach schools, and runs indoor sessions and after-school clubs at schools and other groups often with its dinosaurs and stardome.

However, it now needs help to survive the COVID-19 pandemic and build on its successes.

A spokesman said: “With over 90% of our income coming from schools and our public events, and Easter to the end of August being our busiest period, the COVID-19 pandemic has hit us very hard. This is an appeal to help us survive, so that when normality returns we are here ready to offer the experiences we think everyone will be craving.

“This appeal gives supporters the chance to help us, but also the rewards on offer mean people can look forward to an exciting experience in the future. We have also teamed up with GeoEd to offer some amazing replica fossils with some of the rewards.

“We believe we need to raise around £20,000 to ensure we survive without having to sell many of our resources. We are hopefully eligible for some of the Government support but this is not yet confirmed. Due to the nature of our business we are not expecting any significant income for the next four months or so, and normally we would make around 70% of our annual income in this period. The money would be used to cover items such as salaries, rent and operating bills, we would also be planning to spend money on a new website and marketing material, ready for when this situation is over.”

People can support Hidden Horizons by donating at the https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/hidden-horizons-into-the-future link.