Here’s the follow-up to my last post, about outdoor possibilities in and around Birmingham. I hope there’ll be something of interest here for you for when you just need to get out of the house.
Activities on this list range from FREE up to around a tenner. Just a couple are quite a fair drive from Birmingham. But as it’s the Easter holidays, I’m throwing them into the mix. It’s always good to have options…
If you know of any other attractions that families on the Busy Parents Network would love to hear about, please go ahead and add your comments below.
Culture / Creative
1. The Barber Institute on the Birmingham University campus. Parking right outside. Well worth a leisurely look around the permanent collection – hopefully something the grown ups AND the little people can enjoy. The staff are thankfully very tolerant of small children. Once, I even took preschoolers (on their very best behaviour) to the Friday lunchtime free concerts.
Barber Institute of Fine Art
Most Sundays in term time, they offer family workshops in Drawing, Sculpture, Painting, Craft and Printing. Booking is essential. Holiday workshops are slightly more ambitious in scope, which is reflected in the cost.
EASTER ART SCHOOL: “Dastardly Dragons: Celebrate St George’s Day” Tue 22 and Wed 23rd April. Discover the dragons in the drawings and sculptures around the gallery. Design your own dastardly dragon on day one, then bring it to life in sculpture on day two! £15 per child. Booking essential. Contact 0121 414 2261 or email education@barber.org.uk
Ikon Gallery
2. Ikon Gallery
- Easter family workshops Thurs 17 April £4 per child, payable in advance. Cost includes refreshments. 10:30 -12pm (3 – 5years) 2 – 4pm 6 years + (younger sibings also welcome)
- Family Saturdays – the first Saturday of every month, 1–4pm, FREE – next one is Saturday 3 May – explore sculpture and Michel Francois’s exhibition. Open to all ages, including adults, these sessions of hands-on creative activity engage, challenge and inspire. No need to book, just drop in at any time.
- Parent and toddler mornings. Next one Tue 13th May 10 – 11am £2 per child, payable in advance.
Birmimgham Museum and Art Gallery
3. Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery Activities for children and families take place every day during the Birmingham School Holidays. There is also an art club for children aged 7-11 on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month. (next one tomorrow. Come and make paper mosaic artworks inspired by the tessellating patterns of Morna Lockie-Anrig’s installation ‘The Maid’s Puzzle’. With local artist Benny Semp. 1.30 – 4.00pm In The Activity Zone, £1 per child. Suitable for all ages and for families to work together. Drop – in, no need to book.
As well as the wonderful permanent exhibition, come and take a peek at the Staffordshire Hoard, or the current exhibition of contemporary art (until 18th May). It’s family friendly, and there is a zone especially for small children where they can be as tactile as they like with the props! This was a great hit with my two. Its designed to appeal to the senses where a variety of artworks can be experienced through touch, sound and light.
MAD (Museum of Art and Design), Stratford upon Avon
4. Museum of Art and Design Stratford upon Avon – “Each quirky and fascinating machine has been artistically and intricately made by hand. An extravaganza of gears, chains, pulleys and whirligig paraphernalia!” £6.80 for adults; £4.50 child 6-12 years, under 5s FREE. A great wet weather option.
RAF Museum, Cosford
5. RAF Museum at Cosford – A fun, entertaining day out for the entire family. Next to an active airfield. FREE. Easter Spy Trail 14-25 April. Huge array of aircraft and displays including Fun ‘n’ Flight, a hands-on interactive gallery and the Black Hawk flight simulator. Be prepared for some conversations about war, though!
We are Mud Cafe, Bearwood
6. We Are Mud Café in Bearwood – why not get your kids to paint a bowl or plate? These make great keepsakes for presents, especially for family members.
Indoor active fun
I have looked high and low for some suggestions of ACTIVE indoor fun for you. But I drew a bit of a blank. Maybe you can help us out with some suggestions? I only came up with one. If you’re looking for something a little out of the ordinary, possibly an alternative to the scrum of soft play places or your local swimming pool in school holidays, you could give this a whirl. This enterprise was set up by one cool mama, SKA, who has certainly identified a gap in the market. She puts on daytime disco parties for children up to the age of 7 on the first Saturday of each month in a cafe/bar in the Jewellery Quarter. At BabyGotGroove you will find play tents, reading zones, bubble machines, a face painter, an arts and colouring-in zone, plenty of balloons to play with and music entertainers every month. SKA is a music events director, club promoter, festival curator, radio DJ/ presenter and a mum of two children under the age of 4.
Happy Easter!
busyparentsnetwork 