Summer Hols Week 5 ➡️ Free London Days Out With Curious Kids

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And breathe! The final full week of the school holidays is here. Whether it’s flown by in a blur or crawled at a snail’s pace, there are still a few days left to squeeze the best out of a London summer. From retro gaming in a church to disco block parties on the Southbank or hands-on soap making with medieval herbs, this week’s free family fun is anything but ordinary. Pack a picnic, rally the kids, and let’s wring every last drop of holiday magic before September knocks.

Our family visit to The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe at Sadler’s Wells was a roaring success! The production has snowy sparkle, yet enough menace to keep audiences gripped but not spooked. A majestically-good Aslan was brought to life through inventive puppetry. The music clearly struck a chord: we heard other theatre-goers still singing the songs on the bus home!

London’s best family-friendly museum days, theatre shows, and cultural outings curated for busy parents. If you value this newsletter, so will your friends. Pass it on!

Free Summer Holiday Activities: Week 5 (25-31 August 2025)

Ready for your final week of holiday fun? Every event here is completely free to join, and unless I’ve noted otherwise, you can just drop-in.

🎉 Mark 10 years of FUN DMC with a family block party on Southbank Centre’s Riverside Terrace, packed with disco, hip-hop, dance workshops and beatbox fun (25 Aug; all ages).

🎡 Soak up the Bank Holiday buzz at Bermondsey Carnival in Southwark Park. With kids’ karaoke, circus workshops, face painting, stilt walkers parades, stalls and live music (25 Aug; all ages; plus paid fairground rides).

🚮 Grab a bucket and broom for Skipping Down the Canal, a community clean-up along the scenic Regent’s Canal. North London residents can even earn a £20 voucher (25 Aug; book). This includes the boroughs of Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Hackney, Haringey, Islington and Waltham Forest.

🌴 The final week of Costa Del Croydon brings sock puppetry (25 Aug), storytelling with Peasoup (28 Aug), Bharatanatyam dance (29 Aug), colourful nails (30 Aug) and bellydancing (31 Aug). All ages; book/drop in.

🐜 Discover the tiny but mighty world of ants with author Moesha Kellaway at the Garden Museum, with storytelling, fun facts and crafty ant creating (26 Aug; book; ages 4-8).

🌳 Build your own forest hideout in Den Building at Spitalfields City Farm (26 Aug; ages 5-12).

🎥 Outdoor cinema picks: feel-good ABBA fun with Mamma Mia! at Canada Square Park (PG) or Pixar’s Inside Out 2 at The Scoop (U). Both 26 Aug.

🌿 Step into Westminster Abbey’s 900 year-old walled garden for Wild Westminster Family Day, with seed planting, eco-badge crafts, storytelling, nature trails, and a Chinese Lion Dance (26 & 28 Aug; book; ages 3+).

🖼️ Take a gallery tour through the National Army Museum in Marching Orders: Admirable Artwork and uncover the hidden stories behind historic paintings (26-29 Aug; ages 5+; first come, first served).

🪁 Let imaginations run free in 5 Days of Play with Assemble Play at Boston Manor House, where curious objects can become dens, inventions and games beneath the historic cedar tree (25-29 Aug). [Edited with correct link/dates]

🐍 Meet deities, demons and mischief-makers in Ancient India Storytelling at the British Museum, with Debbie Guneratne weaving colourful tales from Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions (27 Aug; ages 6+; book museum entry).

🧼 Blend medicinal herbs and craft your own bar at Medieval Soap Making at the Museum of the Order of St John, with a chance to meet St John Ambulance Cadets (27 Aug; ages 3-10).

🦸 Discover African Superheroes at Fulham Palace, from Anansi and Nigerian women warriors to Ogun and Oshun, in an interactive mini-film festival led by Black History Walks (27 Aug; book; ages 6+).

🥕 Hear the tale of Oh Carrots, written and illustrated by award‑winning creator Mariajo Ilustrajo, then decorate your own plant pot in Stanfords, Covent Garden (27 Aug; book; ages 3-7).

👗 Dream up magical fashion futures in What If? Reimagining Fashion & Nature Stories at Stratford Library, with storytelling, dress-ups and upcycling workshops from London College of Fashion (27 Aug; book; ages 7-12).

🕹️ Play original consoles at St Mary’s Walthamstow Retro Gaming Day (28 Aug). There’s more free fun for local children all week, including fete games (26 Aug), crafts (27 Aug), films (29 Aug) and Petite Performers dance classes (27-29 Aug; ages 3+).

💡 Play with light, colour, shadows and projection in I Fow You at Wellcome Collection, creating large-scale moving artworks in a playful, BSL-interpreted space (28 Aug; book; ages 14-19, or 14-25 if disabled).

🛠️ Watch live demos of stone carving, gilding and more at Celebration of Makers at Two Temple Place, plus drop-in family stained glass window and clay cherub workshops (28-29 Aug). Printmaking sessions (30 Aug) are Pay What You Can.

🗺️ Travel through Map Stories at the Women’s Museum, with family map-making, AR sandbox demo, and exhibits exploring India and Pakistan’s heritage (29 Aug; book; all ages).

🎭 Hear The Story of the Queen’s House through music with live instruments, dance and storytelling about King James I and Queen Anne (29 Aug; all ages).

🛋️ Slide, wrap yourself in soft sculptures and relax to a dreamy soundscape in the final days of Soft Studio by Hold at Tate Britain (until 31 Aug; best for younger children). Combine with their family tour on 25 or 30 Aug.

Plus free weekend winners:

• Big Small Wonders: Street Parade in Valentines Park (30 Aug); 

• Hands on Armour: Saturday Knight Live at Wallace Collection (30 Aug);

• Artist Studios Open Day and Community Celebration in Chiswick House and Gardens (30 Aug);

• Building Cornerstones: Collaging and Lino-cutting at William Morris Gallery (30 Aug; book);

• Turning Worlds at Greenwich Peninsula, part of GDIF (30-31 Aug); and

• Natural Aspect Summer Concert on Hampstead Heath (31 Aug).

Need still more ideas? Dive into my big roundup of 100+ epic things to do with kids in London this summer, packed with free and paid adventures for the whole break.

I’ll be back soon with a guide to what’s on in September.

Until then, enjoy the rest of the summer!

Please check listings before heading out. Events can change or be cancelled at short notice; and, despite my best efforts, sometimes I make mistakes.