View your basket

Search School Uniform

beach summer palm trees sand castles

Your Six Week Summer Holiday Survival Guide

Six weeks of summer holidays? That’s a whole term of keeping the kids busy 😅! Whether you’re juggling work, playdates, or just trying to stop your sofa from becoming a permanent screen-time zone, we’ve put together this Summer Holiday Survival Guide to try and avoid the regular choruses of 'I'm booored...!'

We’ve even popped together a downloadable PDF full of puzzle games — perfect for those moments when you need a bit of peace and quiet.

Activities for children during the 6 week summer holidays

🧺 Go on a school's out picnic

Pack up some sandwiches, a blanket, and maybe a teddy or two, and head to a local park or nature spot. Bonus points for getting the kids involved in prepping the food (life skills AND less work for you—win-win!). We won't judge if a sneaky bottle of prosecco makes its way into the picnic basket.

basket with food and picnic blanket illustration

🏊‍♂️ Go swimming

Whether it be at the local baths or water park, there’s lots of fun to be had swimming! During the holidays, many swimming baths put on events for children, such as inflatables or a DJ, so keep an eye out for events in your area. It's also a great way for kids to build water confidence and stay active in a fun and playful environment.

swimming illustration

🚵‍♂️ Go on a bike ride

Plan a family cycle ride. Grab the bikes and helmets and go on a family cycling adventure. It’s a great way to burn off energy and explore the countryside. Check out The National Cycle Network for some beautiful paths and routes.

family bike ride  illustration

🍓 Pick your own (and eat the evidence)

Berry farms and fruit picking spots are dotted around the country and make for a great day out. Kids love it, and you leave with fresh fruit for snacks, smoothies... wine, or a questionable attempt at jam. Makes a great field trip! Here's a list of some Pick Your Own Farms in the UK.

jug with fruit illustration

🏐 Host a Mini Sports Day

Race you to the garden! Sack races (old pillowcases will do), spoon-and-egg runs, and a good old-fashioned tug of war. Get siblings, cousins, or neighbours involved for full points. Just remind them: it’s the taking part that counts… especially when you’re not quite sure who actually won.

children in sacks jumping illustration

🥖 Do some baking

Family baking is all about messy fingers and smiley faces. Get hands-on with these family-friendly recipes for hundreds & thousands of fun. Let the little ones loose with icing and toppings – it’s the perfect recipe for creativity, teamwork, and maybe even a sweet treat or two (if it makes it to the plate!).

baking bread activity illustration

✏️ Get creative with chalk

Turn your driveway into a masterpiece (or a hopscotch battleground)! Grab some coloured chalk crayons and let the kids go wild decorating paving slabs, patios, or wherever you don’t mind a bit of doodle. From rainbow hopscotch to epic street maps for toy cars and action figures – who needs paper when you’ve got the pavement?

chalk doodles pattern illustration

📚 Act out your child’s favourite book

Dress up, make believe, and a dash of drama — role play is more than just fun and games! It helps boost your child’s imagination, confidence, communication skills, and creativity (plus a whole bunch of other super skills they’ll use every day). Raid the airing cupboard for capes, crowns, and kitchen utensil wands — with a bit of imagination, anything can become a prop in their next big performance!

story book princess illustration

🧦Make your own puppets

Time to give those odd socks a starring role! Turn them into sock puppets by gluing on some wool for hair and doodling faces with a marker — eyes, nose, cheeky grin, the works. Want to go all out? Add buttons, ribbons, or fabric scraps to give them extra personality (the sillier, the better!). Need ideas? Check out these sock puppet examples Then it’s showtime! Set up a stage with a cardboard box or hide behind the sofa and let the puppet drama begin!

sock puppets illustration

📔 Help your children learn something new

Why not let the kids try their hand at something new this summer? From horse-riding and pottery to painting, rock climbing, or drama, there are loads of fun workshops out there to boost their creativity and confidence. Or, if they’re more into screens than saddles, why not introduce them to coding? Who knows, they might just be the next tech whizz earning enough to buy you a holiday one day. Can’t get out and about? No problem - online tutorials and DIY kits work just as well (and come with the added bonus of doing it all in PJs).

learning books education illustration

🎬 Have a movie night

Have a fun family movie night. You can make your own popcorn cups by creating a cone shape with a piece of paper, decorating it with stickers or drawings, and taping it together for a personal touch. Let each family member take turns picking the movie for an extra dose of excitement. Here is a list of some of the best family movies for you to choose from!

cinema popcorn movie illustration

♟️ Play board games

Here’s a few just to get you started: Play board/card games like Monopoly, Dictionary, Pictionary, Snap, Taboo, Hungry Hippo…

Remember to keep the kids hydrated – make up their favourite flavoured cordial/squash and keep it in a jug in the fridge so it's always cold. You can even make some into ice cubes or ice lollies.

board games chess illustration

Download our Summer Puzzle Pack

Enjoy some quiet time with our downloadable Summer Activities Puzzle Pack. Part of our Summer Holiday Survival Guide, it is chock full of games and activities to keep the little (or not so little) angels quiet for an hour or two!

Technology for outdoor exploration this summer

Even with the glorious sunshine beaming down, the temptation of technology can often unfortunately be enough to keep children inside sat behind a screen. Here are a variety of ways to combine the younger generations love of technology with the outside world.

Phone in nature technology illustration

Geocaching

Geocaching is a great way to get outside and encourage exploration through riddles and clues. It is a real-life treasure hunt with a huge community of dedicated ‘cachers’! Through the Geocache app you can find a number of hidden caches that need to be discovered.

The sense of achievement from cracking the clues combined with the physical exercise it takes to track them down is a perfect recipe for a day of outdoor exploration, allowing children to see their local environment with a new sense of wonder.

geocache discover
geocache finding children

All Trails

Use the AllTrails app to discover kid-friendly walking trails right in your local area. It’s a fantastic way to turn a simple family walk into an exciting adventure for children. With the ability to track your route, set goals, and even earn badges, AllTrails helps gamify the experience-making walks feel like mini quests. This gives kids a sense of direction and accomplishment, keeping them motivated and engaged throughout the journey. Exploring nature becomes more than just exercise-it becomes a fun, purposeful activity the whole family can enjoy.

family walk all trails
walk in the woods

PlantSnap

Whilst on a family walk, keep the adventure going with the PlantSnap app. After using AllTrails to find the perfect route, PlantSnap lets children explore nature even further by identifying plants, flowers, and trees along the way. It turns a simple stroll into an interactive learning experience, sparking curiosity about the natural world around them. Kids can snap photos, learn fun facts, and begin to recognize different species-making each walk both educational and exciting. It’s a great way to nurture a love for nature while keeping young minds active and engaged.

plant snap iphone
plant technology analysis

Zombies, Run!

Make running an exciting game this summer with the Zombies, Run! app. It's a great way to keep kids active and entertained during the holidays. Instead of a regular jog, children become heroes in an immersive story where they collect supplies, complete missions, and escape zombie chases. They can walk, jog, or run anywhere in the world while listening to exciting audio adventures and their favourite music through headphones. If enemies get too close, they’ll need to speed up, adding a fun challenge to their run. Along the way, they collect supplies to trade for trophies or build their own virtual base, making every run feel like an adventure. Age Rating: 12+.

zombies run app
children wearing headphones running through the park

Pokémon GO

Pokémon GO is an app that blends gaming with the real world, making it a fun and active way for children to explore their environment. Using location tracking and mapping technology, the game creates an augmented reality where players catch and train Pokémon in real-life places like parks, streets, and landmarks. It encourages kids to get outside, walk around, and stay engaged as they search for new Pokémon and complete in-game tasks. Although users must be 13 or over to sign up, parents can create an account for younger children, making it a family-friendly way to combine outdoor activity with imaginative play.

pokemon go app iphone
pokemon go pokeball

Merlin Bird ID

Merlin Bird ID is a fun way to get kids noticing the world around them, especially when you’re out for a walk or spending time in the park. The app can help identify birds by their songs or calls, and if they manage to snap a photo, it can suggest what kind of bird it might be. There’s even a simple question-based tool that helps figure it out when they’re not sure what they’ve spotted.

It’s a relaxed and easy way to spark curiosity and get children tuning in to nature. Building up their own little list of birds they’ve found adds an extra layer of excitement and gives them something to keep looking out for wherever they go.

bird in branches
robin on branch

Walkr

Keep your children engaged with learning even during the summer break while also encouraging exercise with Walkr. The app turns walking into a space adventure where every step powers a spaceship, helping kids explore new planets and learn about the universe. Along the way, they can complete missions, meet cute lost space creatures, and build their own galaxy. It’s a fun way to mix learning about space with staying active. Plus, teaming up with friends to reach goals adds an extra layer of excitement to their daily walks.

rocket ship progress space
family walk adventure

iNaturalist

Take your outdoor adventures to the next level with the iNaturalist app. iNaturalist encourages children to become young explorers by recording the wildlife they spot on walks, from bugs to birds and everything in between. Kids can upload their discoveries to the cloud, helping scientists track when and where different species appear. With real-time feedback from experts and a community of nature lovers, children can learn to identify organisms and grow their knowledge of the natural world.

bugs insects collage
squirrel in water

Staying safe in the sun

Staying safe in the sun is especially important for children because their skin is more sensitive and prone to sunburn, which can increase the risk of skin damage and long-term health issues like skin cancer. Protecting children with sunscreen, hats, and shade helps prevent painful burns and keeps them comfortable while they play. Teaching sun safety from an early age also encourages healthy habits that last a lifetime.

6 rules of sun safety clock hat sun cream

With a little planning and creativity, the summer holidays can become a time of connection, exploration, and joyful memories. Whether you're baking together, heading out on a nature trail, or diving into tech-fuelled adventures, there are endless ways to keep kids engaged without breaking the bank. By mixing indoor and outdoor fun, balancing screen time with fresh air, and staying mindful of safety, this summer can be one that brings smiles, discovery, and moments you’ll all cherish long after the summer ends.