Looking for activities to do with children through the UK summer holidays? Here are some starters for 10…

The long summer holidays can sometimes feel daunting for parents looking to keep children entertained without breaking the bank, but fortunately, there are many free activities across the UK that combine fun, learning and outdoor adventure for children and families.

Get creative at home

Art and craft activities don’t need expensive materials. BBC Bitesize offers five easy and free arty activities, from making your own comic book to learning about stop motion animation, all using household items. Children can get creative with old t-shirts, cardboard tubes, and plastic bottles to make recycled art – an environmentally friendly option that doesn’t cost anything.

For digital creativity without the mess, the CBeebies Creative Lab game enables children to draw, paint, and use online stickers completely free.

Outdoor adventures

There’s plenty to entertain in the great outdoors. Turn daily walks into exciting spotting games by creating lists of things to look for: butterflies, bees, sunflowers, or seagulls. The Big Butterfly Count runs from mid-July to early August, where families can download a butterfly chart and spend 15 minutes counting species in their local area. For coastal families, rock pooling and beach days can be low-cost and fun days out.

BBC Bitesize’s “Summer of Adventure” provides a toolkit for parents with lots of ideas to help keep children entertained during the summer, with advice on getting reluctant kids outside and explanations about why outdoor activities are important. In fact, the BBC provides lots of ideas for family activities – whether it rains or shines!

Libraries and museums

Many local libraries offer free weekly events including the Summer Reading Challenge, arts and crafts sessions, and Lego or coding clubs.

In addition, museums across the UK provide free entry and hands-on learning: the Natural History Museum in London has family trails and interactive galleries, and York’s National Railway Museum even allows children to climb inside the trains. Manchester’s Science and Industry Museum features live experiments – and Liverpool’s World Museum has a planetarium and an aquarium.

Physical activities

If you’re looking for something sporty, Barclays runs free tennis sessions at weekends at some parks in the UK, with all equipment provided and no experience necessary. You can also do free outdoor swimming at sea pools like Bude in Cornwall and Shoalstone in Brixham – be sure to heed the safety advice at each venue though. And you’ve no doubt heard of Park Run, but how about Park Yoga? There are 70 venues that offer free Sunday morning classes in parks through the summer until September.

Community events and festivals

There’s nothing like a film to keep kids entertained. There are free outdoor cinema screenings that show family-friendly blockbusters at locations including NEC Lakeside and Queen’s Park Arena in Glasgow. There’s even free  karaoke at Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens in London, if that takes your fancy! 

There are also more than 45 free festivals and carnivals taking place across the UK this summer, including the famous Notting Hill Carnival – check out this list from MoneySavingExpert to see what’s on where you are.

Local programmes

There may be programmes running that help young people who may be facing challenges. For example, the Staffordshire Space scheme brings together the police with private and voluntary partners to support 8-17-year-olds with activities over the summer holidays – building skills and improving confidence and wellbeing in the process. And in Peterborough, the Summer Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme supports those children receiving free school meals, providing activities and healthy food during the six-week break.

Be sure to check your local council’s website to see if there are similar schemes available near you.

References

  1. BBC Bitesize – Free and easy creative activities for your child in summer. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zjrtxbk  (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  2. CBeebies Creative Lab art game. Available at:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/games/cbeebies-creative-lab (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  3. Big Butterfly Count. Available at:  https://bigbutterflycount.butterfly-conservation.org/ (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  4. BBC Bitesize – Summer of Adventure. Available at:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zwbvg7h (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  5. Activities. Available at:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/groups/ceq8p90x033t (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  6. Barclays Free Park Tennis. Available at:  https://www.lta.org.uk/play/free-park-tennis/ (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  7. 10 Best Sea Pools in the British Isles. Available at:  https://www.coastmagazine.co.uk/things-to-do/10-best-sea-pools-uk/ (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  8. Park Yoga. Available at:  https://parkyoga.co/ (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  9. Free Lakeside Cinema and Play Space to Open at the NEC This Summer. Available at:  https://www.thenec.co.uk/news-and-press/free-lakeside-cinema-and-play-space-to-open-at-the-nec-this-summer/ (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  10. Queen’s Park Arena – 2026 Summer Programme. Available at:  https://qpa.inhouse.scot/ (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  11. Summer in Vauxhall. Available at:  https://beinvauxhall.com/summer-in-vauxhall/  (Accessed 16 July 2026)
  12. MoneySavingExpert – Free UK festivals & carnivals. Available at: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/deals/free-uk-festivals/  (Accessed 16 July 2026)
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