FREE Summer Holiday Activities 2023: Week 2

How has your first week of the summer holidays been?

We're just back from a week in Northumberland. We leaned into the lack of reception and WiFi by doing puzzles, watching DVDs, and spending as much time relaxing outdoors as the weather - and our energy levels - allowed. We terrified the kids (and ourselves!) with a tour of the Poison Garden at The Alnwick Garden, then checked out their magnificent new playground, Lilidorei.

We got dangerously lost in the labyrinth at Cragside - the ruins of Lindisfarne Priory proved a much safer place for Museum Girl to play hide and seek! We escaped the worst of the downpours in the vast second hand bookshop Barter Books and the new heritage attraction-meets-distillery, Ad Gefrin.

And we headed over the border to see Jupiter Artland, a sculpture park just outside Edinburgh that’s been on my visit wish list for years. I'll share more of our holiday soon.

The highlight of our long journey home was a cultural pitstop at Angel of the North - it’s even more impressive up close. Hear me and Catherine from Cultural Wednesday chat about six of our favourite cultural places to break your motorway journey in Episode 4 of The Exhibitionists Podcast.

I’d love to hear what you've been up to. This week, I really enjoyed receiving this glowing feedback on Museum of the Order of St John’s family activities:

“Museum of St John family day was brilliant! Thank you so much for including it in your round up, we would never have gone otherwise. They had LOADS of friendly staff/volunteers (including Museum of London handling session!), kids did loads of crafts and enjoyed the beautiful garden (had our picnic there!), watering and sweeping with mini brushes and watering cans, and we felt so welcome and relaxed. They even had a little padded bit for babies! We will def go back! Thanks so much Vyki! X”

Keep the reviews coming! Hit reply, post in my Facebook group or DM me on Instagram to let me know what your family are enjoying.

FREE Summer Holiday Activities: Week 2

Keep your kids entertained on the cheap this summer - here's my pick of completely FREE family activities this week in London! Click the links for times and booking info.

I’ve shared up to 5 suggestions a day and indicated if they run on other dates.

Don’t forget there’s more ideas - paid and free - for every week of the summer in my ultimate guide to the Summer Holidays blog post.


Monday 31 July 2023

1. It’s fun with portraits in Week 1 of Summer Family Festival at National Portrait Gallery. Activities vary daily; today you can make clay masks, self-portrait animations and pin-badge portraits. Plus hear the story of Ada Lovelace. Drop in. Runs 31 July-4 August.

2. Be wowed by Luke Jerram’s Mars at All Saints’ Church, W11. Book. Runs 31 July-8 August.

3. Raw leaf printing and dyeing family workshop by Edible Landscapes in Finsbury Park, N4. Book. Ages 4+.

4. Create expressive works in Bold brushstrokes: Cardboard landscape paintings at Exchange, Ilford. Book. Ages 5-15, plus SEN session.

Tuesday 1 August 2023

1. Summer on the Square kicks off with Mandinga Arts. Create a colourful costume to parade around Trafalgar Square. Drop in. Runs 1-3 August.

2. Make crafty communication devices in Time Travel Club at National Archives, TW9. Book/drop in. Every Tuesday in August.

3. Help build a play structure in MATT+FIONA: Build and play summer residency at Museum of the Home, E2. Every Tuesday in August.

4. Learn how to mend fake wounds in Field Hospital at National Army Museum, SW3. Drop in, ages 7+. Runs 1-4 August. 

5. Play with clay - seed bugs with Mud Gang Pottery, SE1.

Wednesday 2 August 2023

1. Family Day: Knights and Dragons at Westminster Abbey. Book.

2. Family Activity: Design a dressing with storytelling at Museum of the Order of St John, EC1. Drop in.

3. It’s National Play Day! Celebrate with special events at Coram’s Fields (WC1), Marble Hill House (TW1) and Young V&A (E2).

4. Make large block structures outdoors in Build with Wren at Old Royal Naval College, SE10. Every Wednesday in August.

5. Cut, collage and create in All the Generations Windrush zine-making workshop at Hackney Archives, E8. Book.

Thursday 3 August 2023

1. Experiment with making wearable art and performance photographs in Drop in Design: Body Sculptures at V&A Museum. Drop in. Ages 5+. Runs 2-4 August.

2. Make your own architect's house at Sir John Soane's Museum, WC2. Book/drop in. Ages 4+, younger siblings welcome.

3. There’s three workshops to join in with at Chisenhale Studios, E3:
   Make a portrait with your child using plant life; Weaving our futures with Zethu Maseko and Let's Dance! - Beginner Kathak class. Book, ages 6-12.

4. Work collaboratively in Big Build: LEGO Space Base by Imperial College White City, W12. Book, ages 7-11. Runs 2 & 3 August.

Friday 4 August 2023

1. Wonderful Wandle wildlife: Mini beasts printmaking workshops at Honeywood Museum, SM15. Book/drop in. Also runs 18 August.

2. Summer Family Fridays at Young V&A, E2. Drop in.

3. Build, make and play in your own Interactive Art Gallery with Summer in the Square, WC2. Drop in. Runs 4-6 August.

4. Somerset House fountains will be fully on from 1 to 6 August. Plus see Chila Kumari Singh Burman’s much-loved neon ice cream van installation throughout August. WC2, drop in.

Daily, all drop in

1. Play Studio at Tate Britain, SW1. Daily throughout the school holidays.

2. Morph’s Epic Art Adventure Trail, across City and Central London. Until 20 August.

3. Family Hub: Flight academy at IWM London. 31 July-25 August.

4. Uniqlo Tate Play Rasheed Araeen Zero to Infinity at Tate Modern, SE1. 22 July-27 August.

5. Growing Curiosities: The Science of Gardens at the Garden Museum, SE1. Until 14 September.

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FREE weekend activities: 29-30 July 2023

Need some weekend inspiration? Here’s some ideas, all of them completely free. They all either have space at the time of posting or are drop in - do click the links for timings and any booking info before heading out.

Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 July 2023

1. There’s drop-in free family events at Festival14 at Canary Wharf, E14, including Let’s All Dance performance of The Princess and The Frog and A-Line Art: Fold Your City workshop in Crossrail Roof Garden. They might also allow drop-ins to their pre-booked events.

Saturday 29 July 2023

1. It’s Rainbow Storytime at William Morris Gallery, E17.

2. Tiger Day at Epping Forest District Museum, EN9.

3. Knights and Dragons themed Story Saturdays at Westminster Abbey.

4. Lagos Family Day at South London Gallery, SE5.

5. Animate with Shadow & Light in Families Create at Zabludowicz Collection, NW5.

6. Animal Inventions with Lucia Vinti: Family Workshop, WC1.

7. Family Pride Day by Tramshed Theatre, SE18.

8. Family Craft - Clay workshop with Emma White at Myplace, RM3.

Sunday 30 July 2023

1. Autism-friendly Relaxed early opening for families at British Library, NW1.

2. Many anything possible in Cardboard Kingdom - Imagine it. Build it. Create it at Stoneford Garden, RM10.

3. Make posters in Edgware is a place for...workshops with Holly Graham at Edgware Library.

4. Love Parks week at Lloyd Park and Higham Hill Park, E17.

5. Create a David Hockney inspired swimming pool painting in Open Sundays at Pitzhanger, W5.

6. Design and create a prototyped app in this all day workshop for young people at Woolwich Centre Library, SE18. Ages 10-14.

Have a fantastic weekend and here’s to a successful second week of the school holidays!

Until next time,

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