By Leah Conway –
With October half-term approaching, here’s a range of free and paid activities you can get involved in across Kirklees and beyond.
Halloween Spooktacular in the Piazza
The Halloween Spooktacular will run throughout Kirklees but will have a lot of family activities in the Piazza shopping centre, Huddersfield, from 23-30 October.
There’s no need to book, and you can drop into a variety of exciting activities:
Saturday 23 October, Tuesday 26 & Thursday 28 October, Maker World Halloween drop-in activities:
A variety of crafty creative activities run throughout the day from 11 am -3 pm. There’s no need to book, and you can drop in throughout the day to enjoy some free, spooky fun!
Monday 25, Wednesday 27 & Friday 29 October, Make Halloween parade costumes and masks.
Join costume and mask workshops for ages from 5 to 13. There is a workshop open to 5-7 year-olds from 10:30 am-12 pm and an afternoon workshop from 1:30 pm-3:30 pm for those from 8-13 years.
Friday 29 October, Storytelling Trail: ‘Jack and the Witch’
Another free event includes joining award-winning Ursula Holden Gill as she tells the magical story of Jack and the Witch. This event takes place in Unit 35 in the Piazza, which is next to Maker World. There are two storytelling sessions, one starting at 1 pm and another starting at 2:45 pm
Saturday 30 October, Maker World Halloween drop-in activities
Another day filled with a variety of spooky activities and crafts. Here’s the schedule for the last day of the Halloween Spooktacular at the Piazza:
- Pumpkin Carving Workshop and Competition 11 am – 3.30 pm free
- Tell Tales and Spooky Stories Parade – 3 pm
- Walkabout entertainment 11 am – 3.30 pm
Cosmia Festival, online
Huddersfield Based Cosmia Festival 2021 is hosting a range of free online events throughout the half-term week, from author talks, workshops for children and young people, panels and book clubs. You can listen to The Tale of the Whale, join drama workshops, illustration workshops, poem competitions and more. To find out more, go to the Cosmia Festival website.
Halloween sugar skull family workshop, Wednesday, 27 October
Join Create Space at the Globe Arts Studio in Slaithwaite for a Halloween sugar skull family workshop. This activity includes making Halloween crafts with air dry clay on Wednesday, 27 October. To join, you have to book through their website, and it is a paid activity. The workshop is an hour-long and includes learning all the best techniques for creating spooky Halloween decorations.
Ticket prices range from £14 for a ticket for two to £42 for 6 people.
We've got a brilliant workshop for 12-16 year olds in #Cleckheaton next Friday. Come and learn how to illustrate magical creatures with @KirkleesLibrary.
Oh and it's FREE!
Book here:https://t.co/WZ3y1P3UEJ pic.twitter.com/9sGipg1K2I
— CosmiaFestival ? (@CosmiaFestival) October 20, 2021
Cliffe House, Monday 25 to Friday 29 October
There’s a range of paid activities at Cliffe House in Shepley, from archery, pumpkin picking, family nature trail, climbing wall, bushcraft. You have to book online to join in on these activities; tickets vary from £2 to £7.50.
Tolson Museum, Halloween Trail and Monster-making, Tuesday 26 October.
12 pm – 4.45 pm
On Tuesday, 26 October, you can follow Tolson Museum’s free spook Halloween trail, finding monsters and the ingredients to a spooky spell and making a monster puppet along the way. You can find out more on Tolson Museum’s Facebook page.
Oakwell Hall, Spooky Halloween Trail, 23,24, 26-28 & 30 October
Throughout half-term, you can visit Oakwell Hall’s spooky Halloween trail; you can add to the experiences with the additional activity bag (£2.50); the trail runs from 10 am to 3:45 pm.
Bagshaw Museum, Terrifying Halloween Trailstues, 26,28, 30 & 31 October; 12 pm – 4.45 pm
Bagshaw Museum has created three terrifying Halloween trails to explore over the October half-term. You can spot the scary objects around the museum and win Halloween themed activity packs.
Read more: Huddersfield community organisation launches Christmas card design challenge
Outside of Kirklees:
York Maze, Hallowtween
Hallowtween is a spooky experience aimed at families with children aged 10-15. This year, Hallowtween 2021 will be open from Tue 26th – Sunday 31st October, from 12:30 pm to 5:30 pm – prices vary depending on day & time.
Stockeld Park, The Halloween Adventure
Stockeld Park in Wetherby, North Yorkshire, is hosting a wide range of brand new, spooky activities over the October half-term. They will be enchanted trails, magical mazes, a tangle tree climb and more. Every child with a paid ticket gets to pick a free pumpkin from our pumpkin patch.
Burton Agnes Hall Spooky Woodland Trail
Burton Agnes Hall is hosting an eery woodland trail. It includes quizzes, facts and an adventure playground along the way. The Halloween trail will run from Saturday 23 to Sunday 31 October – from 11 am to 4 pm. It is a family-friendly activity, and dogs are also welcome. Under 4s go free, and children to adults tickets range from £5.50 to £8, with a family ticket from £14.50.