Summer holidays in London - Let's make this the definitive thread

[lisalisa]

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Blu - if you look further down, there's a link to the Royal Parks website where they've listed the entertainment for Bushy Park. There's something on there almost every week day it seems (at around lunch time nr the playground).

Blu, I missed the sheepdog fiasco - was it on Sunday? Were the sheep captured, or are they still at large? I thought it was most enterprising of you to have your own stall, until I got closer and discovered it was the Brockwell Lido Users .

There's a Caribbean Carnival at the Horniman Museum Sunday 23 July 1-6pm, and there are other events there over the summer - follow link for details. That clashes with the Surrey Butterfly Garden Show at Juniper Hall near Dorking this weekend.

As a Sydenham Hill Wood volunteer I can confirm that the panther is mythical (at any rate it does not appear on the species list for grid square TQ37). Those with older children (and no routine ) may be interested in the Bat and Moth Walk at 9.30pm on Saturday 29 July (meet at the Crescent Wood Road entrance).

There's a Wildlife Watch club based at Crystal Palace (and there are others around London - details here .

Hallegerda - you have sussed part of the reason for my name!
The sheepdog fiasco was Sunday 11am. I thnk they were all re-captured - otherwise, watch out for a very sleek and fat Sydenham Panther!!

lisalisa - great idea for a thread, thank you. Here's my input.

Picnic in Richmond Park - lots of shade, deer & ducks & swans up by Pens Ponds. Take the bikes & scooters for car free roads too

Another vote for Kew Gardens

Another vote for the Wetland Centre in Barnes

The Army Museum in Chelsea is good - even for those not that interested in guns & tanks

Battersea Park - boating lake & zoo

Libraries - in Wandsworth our libraries have various activities going on for children.

Wandsworth Museum - not worth schlepping across London for, but good if you are in the vicinity.

Oh I will want to hear all about the Livesey Shoppingsecret - have been past it n times on the bus where we used to live and never been in

shoppingsecret, thanks for saying hello - of course I didn't mind! I may have appeared a little distracted because a) we had a train to catch and b) no fewer than three sultry Year 6 sirens had greeted DS1 on the way down that road and I was wondering whether perhaps he could have appeared a little more polite and less dismissive, but then again maybe he has sense . I'm glad your trip to the Natural History Museum went well.

Dulwich Park now has a lake again. It has a good playground and is good for cycling. You can either take your own bikes or hire them there. The bike hire place has banana bikes and three wheelers as well as conventional ones.

Further east, Kelsey Park has Punch and Judy sessions on Wednesday afternoons in the holidays, big lakes with ducks, geese, swans and herons and lovely (but quite sloping) places to cycle if you ignore all the no cycling notices like everyone else does .

I forgot to mention the Woodcraft Folk Playout sessions - free, non-competitive games sessions often featuring parachutes, frisbees and fruit punch making. Look on a park notice board near you for details - I know they do several venues in Lambeth and there may be others around London (and outside). I looked for a website with details, but couldn't find one. There's one in Hillside Gardens on Thursday 27 July - I can't remember the time.

Ooo! Might go along to Free Time on Tuesday, batters. Sounds great. Lovely ideas on this thread from a quick skim. Will read properly later and see if I can add anything. Off to Hampstead Heath and the lido tomorrow.

Not much to add for SE London except that the Horniman Museum is running family storytelling sessions on Mondays and Fridays over the holidays - each session lasts 45 minutes - great free entertainment if you follow it with a picnic! Also Crystal Palace Park has a fab dinosaur walk and nice play equipment.

Yes- Hampstead Heath is a fantastic day out actually. The lido is excellent- got a bit crowded at times- but really refreshing and very safe. Almost half of the absolutely massive pool is shallow enough for short stops, so I didn't feel too worried about my almost swimmers (who have the terrible combination of great water confidence and daring do but not quite so great actual swimming skills as yet- nerve wracking!). Then there's the Heath itself which is lovely and there are several playgrounds- 2 of them are staffed- a little kids one and an adventurish one and there's also a newly refurbished one at the top with a range of equipment for different ages and a massive paddling pool. We had a really lovely day.

Somerset House today was great as well. Thanks for reminding me about it. I sat 6 feet from the great John Hegley.

batters, Blu and others in or near Lambeth, I took a look at the park noticeboard yesterday and found Woodcraft Folk Playout times -

12.30 to 2.30 and 3.30 to 5.30
Thursdays in Hillside Gardens,
Wednesdays in Brockwell Park.

And lots of other times in other places in Lambeth. Contact Mark Butcher on 07905 928 397 or e-mail [email protected] (I got the contact details from the Norwood Eye online).

Oh dear - sorry if I misinformed you, but I thought I'd read the notice correctly . There were some odd unexplained asterisks on it. Maybe the 12.30 to 2.30 session was cancelled because of the thunder storm at around 12.30. The 3.30 session was definitely on - we went to it. DS1 had complained beforehand that he was far too grown-up for parachute games but joined in quite happily when it came to it, despite being given the option to play football instead.

Thanks for setting my mind at rest, batters .

You should check www.artburst.co.uk out, they work at the Museum of Childhood and are really good. They are running their own activities this summer, I've signed my 6 year old for the Show & Tell 4 days Click on the link for more info - well worth the money
www.artburst.co.uk/docs/Show_Tell_Make_A_Play.pdf

Anyone based in East/North London you should check Artburst out, they are running some art and drama workshops for 5 - 11's in London Fields over the summer. You have to pay for the sessions but they are well worth it, we've been to loads of their workshops at the Museum of Childhood - they do the Wondertots and Wordburst sessions there (always very hard to book on to as they are so popular!) check out their website www.artburst.co.uk I've signed my son up for the Show & Tell week

This thread is wonderful. I am arriving in Rchmond tomorrow for 5 days and whilst we'll be chock a block with activities with the relatives it's nice to have some other options to choose from (for now and the next few visits too!) Thanks