Free Half-Term Activities Across the North West
With children off school for the autumn half-term, venues across north-western England are offering free activities, from pumpkin carving and spooky crafts to fish feeding and swimming.
Merseyside
Tate Liverpool is open daily from 24 October to 1 November with "Branching Out", free creative sessions in its learning space where children make woodland-themed art. At the World Museum, a dance workshop on 29 October teaches a traditional dance from the Nahua region of La Huasteca in north-eastern Mexico. On 30 and 31 October the Museum of Liverpool's Sudley House craft room runs free "Spooky Sudley" workshops for children, along with a Sudley Pumpkin Trail.
In Sefton, the council's free children's book festival Books Alive runs in Southport from 24 to 31 October and includes a Postman Book Trail. Halloween craft sessions are on all week at Formby, Netherton, Maghull and Bootle libraries, with dates and times on the council website.
Greater Manchester
Children under 16 and adults over 60 can swim for free at various Manchester locations, booked through the Better website. Free pumpkin-carving sessions run in several city parks from 27 to 31 October, and Heaton Park hosts a free lantern-making session on 27 October from 12:00 to 13:00. The Lowry in Salford has a free exhibition, Wild Things, until 1 November, with play areas for under-sevens; slots must be reserved online. The People's History Museum offers a skeleton trail and mask-making workshop, and Spinningfields has an outdoor exhibition by Gillie and Marc with nine endangered-animal sculptures.
Bolton Aquarium holds free fish feeds on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 13:00. Bolton Library has events from 26 to 31 October, including craft workshops and a cinema screening. Wigan Council hosts two mask-making sessions at Leigh Town Hall on Friday 30 October, and Rochdale Town Hall has an obstacle course from 27 October to 2 November.
Cheshire and Lancashire
The Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse in Northwich has a Paper Pumpkin Trail until 1 November. The Grosvenor Museum in Chester holds Halloween drop-in crafts on 27 and 28 October. Cheshire East's rangers have a Halloween trail at Brereton Heath nature reserve until 1 November.
In Lancashire, the Lightpool Festival in Blackpool, with illuminations, live performances and interactive installations, runs until 31 October. Lancashire Police Museum in Lancaster makes Halloween keyrings on 29 and 30 October, no booking needed. Accrington has its shop trail Monday to Friday, Lancashire's libraries offer slime making, family yoga and Lego clubs, and Brockholes Nature Reserve hosts a different crafts event each day. Wyre Council's Monster Ball brings 45-minute Halloween theatre shows to Pilling and St Michael's on 30 and 31 October.
Source: BBC News