24 October to 1 November, starting in 82 days. Term dates are set council by council, so treat the edges as approximate. The October break is pumpkins, wellies and the first properly dark teatimes, and the North West does it well: farms run pumpkin patches and spooky trails, the museums stay free, and the Blackpool Illuminations are still running for the fireside drive home.
Collected from the councils, libraries, theatres and venues running them, and refreshed nightly. More arrive as organisations publish their programmes, so this list grows between now and the break.
A wolf-pack sculpture trail around the wonkiest Tudor house in England. Cross the moat, count the wolves, and let the hall's crooked floors do the entertaining.
Walk through a pair of giant lungs, meet a supersize brain and follow the digestive system to its logical conclusion. New gallery, runs to December.
Runs on 48 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Join us at our weekly bounce and rhyme event.
Perfect for 0, 4’s explore songs, rhymes, stories and sensory play in our Bounce and Rhyme sessions.
Join us at our weekly bounce and rhyme event.
At baby clinic, families can discuss any health issues and have their child weighed and measured.
Join us at our weekly bounce and rhyme event.
Join our playful sessions and meet new friends, explore the library spaces, learn new rhymes and songs and enjoy some sensory play in our Bounce and Rhyme Sessions.
Come and join the fun at Limehurst Library’s Lego Club.
Come and join the fun at Northmoor Library’s Lego Club.
Join us at our weekly bounce and rhyme event.
This is a FREE drop-in session with no booking required.
Come and join the fun at Fitton Hill Library’s Lego Club.
Parents, carers and children under 5 are invited to join us for a free play session (term-time only) Oldham Libraries
Join our playful sessions and meet new friends, explore the library spaces, learn new rhymes and songs and enjoy some sensory play in our Bounce and Rhyme Sessions.
Join us at our weekly bounce and rhyme event.
Runs on 17 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
This is a FREE drop-in session with no booking required.
Come and join the fun at Failsworth Library’s Lego Club.
Six miles of lights along the prom from the big switch-on night to early January. Drive it, walk it, or catch a heritage tram through the middle of it, which is the version kids remember.
Runs on 11 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Runs on 9 dates, with a relaxed or autism-friendly session. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Runs on 9 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Runs on 12 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Runs on 9 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Runs on 5 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Runs on 4 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Runs on 4 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
New Event for the Ribble Steam Railway Calendar, Brick Show 2026 Kick off the half term break with a trip to the museum to see a varied display of Lego model display by AFOLs from across the UK.
Runs on 2 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Runs on 3 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Join us in October half term for a fungi foray, Halloween crafts and a bat walk.
Runs on 7 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
This is a FREE drop-in session with no booking required.
Little Reads is a fun, interactive workshop using songs and stories to explore children’s picture books.
Starts at 1pm. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Bring the whole family along and enjoy some shared story time and guided reading activities.
Join us on Fleetwood Beach to explore the strandline and pick up litter and plastic off the beach in a bid to help nature thrive!
Starts at 12pm. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Starts at 10am to 12pm. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
October rain is a certainty, not a risk. These are the reliable indoor days, ranked by the venues families rate most.
Working steam engines, the story of Cottonopolis, and hands-on galleries in the world's oldest surviving passenger railway station. Free, and the live demonstrations are the bit kids actually remember.
Five floors, free, and it covers three things small children reliably love: giant dinosaurs, an aquarium and a space gallery. The best wet-weather day within half an hour.
The city's story with an overhead railway carriage to climb aboard and Little Liverpool, a dedicated hands-on gallery for under-6s. Free, on the waterfront, and the window views are half the fun.
Free, right in the city centre, and properly set up for children: the Lion's Den family gallery has its own play space and the family activity programme costs nothing. Closed Mondays.
A T. rex skeleton cast, live frogs in the vivarium, Egyptian mummies and a genuinely good natural history floor. Free, university-run, and less overwhelming than the big London equivalents.
A small entry fee now, then a pay-per-play card for the attractions: a giant sand and water quarry, mini golf, go-karts and play areas, funded by a world-record ice cream shop. Cheap after 3.30pm, glorious in any weather.
Planning further ahead? The rolling school holidays page always shows the current or next break, and the what's on board has everything dated across the region.