Rhyme times, toddler sessions, stay and play and everything else that genuinely works with a pre-schooler across the North West.
A Pokemon trading-card trail through the Tudor hall's gardens: find the giant cards, scan the codes, battle the boredom. Runs to early September.
The North Park becomes a Play Hub with giant deckchairs, den building, log piles and lawn games, plus Pokemon play zones this year. Runs right through to the first week of September.
A prehistoric trail winding through a garden centre, with interactive stops along the way. The most talked-about local event of the summer by a wide margin.
Decorated pianos dotted around Liverpool ONE all summer, free for anyone to play. Five minutes of chopsticks between shops, or stay for whoever sits down next.
The libraries' free summer challenge - read six books, collect the stickers, finish with a certificate. This year's theme is music. The single cheapest way to fill the quiet days between days out.
Free arts and crafts on the floating village through the holidays, with a Saturday LEGO club until 22 August.
An urban beach on the park above Liverpool ONE with family rides and six weeks of entertainment. Sand in the city centre; bring a bucket.
Extra shows, storytelling and activities added to the usual treehouses and zipwires for the summer. Reviewers put the sweet spot at ages 2 to 10.
Water play and outdoor games in a walled garden. Free if you already have National Trust membership, which makes it one of the better value days out if you do.
A Winnie the Pooh trail through the gardens, pitched at the under-sevens. The estate farm runs its own summer activities alongside it.
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.
Lifelike dinosaur puppets roam the museum with storytelling, crafts and sensory play on Wednesdays and Thursdays through the holidays.
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.
Inflatables set up in the town centre square every day through the holidays. No tickets, no booking, and it is right next to the shops and cafes if you need a sit down.
Hands-on farm activities on the Tatton estate, separate from the parkland and the Pooh trail. Barns mean it survives a wet forecast.
Garden games, trails and play activities across the Tudor estate for the summer holidays.
Guided family nature sessions across two St Helens parks, aimed squarely at primary-age children and under-fives.
Meet DJ Mu-Mu who will demonstrate the art of turntables and vinyl at our Read & Rave activity!
Runs on 6 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Runs on 6 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Songs and stories for children under 5 and parents/carers.
Join us at our weekly bounce and rhyme event.
Join us for our monthly pre school meet at Foulshaw Moss nature reserve.
Baby Bubbles and Rhymes is a free interactive children's event aimed at children aged 0-5 years with the use of musical instruments and play activities such as parachute play and ball pool.
Come along and enjoy rhymes, singing, musical instruments and bubbles.
Runs on 6 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
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.
Starts at 10am. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Celebrate National Playday with us at the Hive!
A group for parents/carers and their little ones.
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.
The opening event of Warrington's Wednesday programme, with sports, creative workshops, live music and games across the park.
Enhance bonding and attachment between you and your baby.
Traditional rides, face painting, bike stunt shows, sports sessions and crazy golf, all free. The busiest of the town centre sessions and the one with most for older children.
Runs on 6 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Join us at our weekly bounce and rhyme event.
Parents, carers and children under 5 are invited to join us for a free play session (term-time only) Oldham Libraries
A cosy space for little ones and their grown-ups to connect, play and chat.
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.
Can’t make our regular Bounce and Rhyme sessions?
Get ready to move, groove, and feel the rhythm!
A relaxed, drop-in creative session inspired by music.
Drop in and dive into a world of K‑pop, creativity, and fun!
The Wednesday programme moves into the town centre, turning Market Gate and Time Square into one big play space.
Full-size funfair rides indoors on the waterfront - the wet-week insurance policy of the summer holidays.
Live music, family activities and the Library on the Lawn from The Reader - bring a picnic and make an afternoon of it.
Sports, workshops, music and games in Victoria Park. Plenty of grass if you want to take a picnic and let them run.
The biggest independent flower show in the country, with a proper family programme this year: alpacas, a children's trail, doodle wall and kids' yoga between the show gardens.
Meet Peppa at the transport museum with a funfair, face painters, crafts and a petting farm alongside the steam trains.
Join artist Caroline for a fun, free Summer Reading Challenge activity!
Explore what music might look like in the future with a space-y playlist and futuristic crafts!
The last of the Wednesday sessions, and the one that works if the weather turns, since a good chunk of it is inside.
Jets, wing-walkers and display teams over the beach, with simulators, military vehicles and children's activities on the sand. One of the North West's biggest free-to-watch spectacles.
A traditional country weekend on the working farm, with country crafts, food and drink stalls, demonstrations and a daily programme of activities.
Join us for our monthly pre school meet at Foulshaw Moss nature reserve.
A six week course that enhances bonding and attachment between you and your baby.
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 9 dates. Times, prices and tickets are on the organiser's own page.
Join us for our monthly pre school meet at Foulshaw Moss nature reserve.
Every town with something dated coming up, busiest first.