Children Primary

Celebrate the 30th year of A Squash and A Squeeze in a fun-packed hour of stories and songs based on the author’s many books. She performs with her guitar-playing husband Malcolm and other actors, bringing to life her much treasured and brand new stories. Get ready to join in!

There will be a BSL interpreter at this event

Come and join Rooted Forest School for outdoor family sessions inspired by the Forest School approach. We’ll use foraged materials to craft natural items that you can take away with you, taking part in some simple tool use and finishing off with a hot apple juice around the fire. These sessions are aimed at families and will run whatever the weather, so make sure you’re wrapped up for the conditions.

An opportunity to get crafting! Activities differ every day, including everything from print-making to junk modelling with recycled materials. Get messy and creative: your imagination is the limit.

Book for the session and you can drop in at any point during the 2.5 hour duration. Accompanying adults: please stay in attendance at all times, but you do not require a ticket.

The super-star space scientist is back with her second book, and is ready to answer your questions about the wonders of the universe. Reach for the stars with questions like…is it raining gemstones on Jupiter? What do astronauts have for dinner on the International Space Station?

Join our family group and experience what Theraplay is like! The session will be playful, physical and fun. Everyone joins in, so come prepared for activity. Theraplay is a way of playing with your child which builds and enhances attachment, self-esteem, trust in each other and joyful engagement. It’s based on the natural patterns of healthy interaction between parent and child. You can use the ideas in everyday parenting and in any setting where relationship connection is important, for example in schools, older adult care settings, or for family reconnection following life events.

Come and join Rooted Forest School for outdoor family sessions inspired by the Forest School approach. We’ll use foraged materials to craft natural items that you can take away with you, taking part in some simple tool use and finishing off with a hot apple juice around the fire. These sessions are aimed at families and will run whatever the weather, so make sure you’re wrapped up for the conditions.

Come on down to the farm with JB Gill for an event packed full of adventure and animal antics. Dr Dolittle meets Dick King-Smith in Ace and the Animal Heroes: The Big Farm Rescue, a funny and charming tale from the pop star and presenter turned award-winning farmer and author. When Ace receives a surprise gift from a long-lost relative, he and his grandparents pack up their life in the city and move to the countryside to live on a run-down farm. Little does Ace know there’s an even bigger surprise awaiting him…

JB Gill rose to fame as a member of one of the UK’s biggest boybands – JLS. Ten years ago, he set up a farm in the Kent countryside, where he lives with his wife and children, Ace and Chiara. JB presents Channel 5’s Milkshake TV series Cooking With The Gills and CBeebies BAFTA-nominated Down on the Farm.

Join our family group and experience what Theraplay is like! The session will be playful, physical and fun. Everyone joins in, so come prepared for activity. Theraplay is a way of playing with your child which builds and enhances attachment, self-esteem, trust in each other and joyful engagement. It’s based on the natural patterns of healthy interaction between parent and child. You can use the ideas in everyday parenting and in any setting where relationship connection is important, for example in schools, older adult care settings, or for family reconnection following life events.

An opportunity to get crafting! Activities differ every day, including everything from print-making to junk modelling with recycled materials. Get messy and creative: your imagination is the limit.

Book for the session and you can drop in at any point during the 2.5 hour duration. Accompanying adults: please stay in attendance at all times, but you do not require a ticket.

Have some fun with Michael Rosen, former Children’s Laureate and much loved author and poet, creator of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt, A Great Big Cuddle and Michael Rosen’s Sad Book. Michael is a hugely popular performer – come along and join him for stories, poetry, humour and entertainment for all ages.

Come and join Rooted Forest School for outdoor family sessions inspired by the Forest School approach. We’ll use foraged materials to craft natural items that you can take away with you, taking part in some simple tool use and finishing off with a hot apple juice around the fire. These sessions are aimed at families and will run whatever the weather, so make sure you’re wrapped up for the conditions.

Come and join Rooted Forest School for outdoor family sessions inspired by the Forest School approach. We’ll use foraged materials to craft natural items that you can take away with you, taking part in some simple tool use and finishing off with a hot apple juice around the fire. These sessions are aimed at families and will run whatever the weather, so make sure you’re wrapped up for the conditions.

Join actor, writer and Rizzle Kicks member Jordan Stephens along with illustrator Beth Suzanna for an interactive storytelling adventure to find The Missing Piece. A heart-warming, fresh and original picture-book event about family and friendship. Beth Suzanna is Hay Festival’s 2023 Illustrator in Residence.

Please bring your own sketchbook and pencils to draw along in this event. You can buy these at the Hay Festival shop.

The story of animation stretches back to the early 1800s with the invention of spinning optical illusion devices such as the zoetrope. These days animation is everywhere from animated films, cartoons and GIFs to computer games and VR. But how did we get here? Learn about the origins of early animation and create your own loopy animation in this fun, hands-on workshop led by visual artists MASH Cinema.

Come and join Rooted Forest School for outdoor family sessions inspired by the Forest School approach. We’ll use foraged materials to craft natural items that you can take away with you, taking part in some simple tool use and finishing off with a hot apple juice around the fire. These sessions are aimed at families and will run whatever the weather, so make sure you’re wrapped up for the conditions.

An opportunity to get crafting! Activities differ every day, including everything from print-making to junk modelling with recycled materials. Get messy and creative: your imagination is the limit.

Book for the session and you can drop in at any point during the 2.5 hour duration. Accompanying adults: please stay in attendance at all times, but you do not require a ticket.

Cwtch up for this joyful event full of familiar rhymes, riddles and tongue twisters, from ‘Oranges and Lemons’ to ‘She Sells Sea Shells’. Allie Esiri and her guests present these and contemporary favourites such as ‘Baby Shark’ and new rhymes from Floella Benjamin, Julia Donaldson, Brian Bilston and Michael Rosen. Allie’s beautiful anthology A Nursery Rhyme for Every Night of the Year is a definitive collection of nursery rhymes, each introduced with a quirky fact or historical reference.

Please note that the final line-up may be subject to change.

Join the Horrible Histories guru, author and podcast host as he takes you on a trip through the amazing history hidden in the things we use every day. Did you know that the first TV was made out of biscuit tins and knitting needles? Or that the humble paperclip helped lead an anti-war movement? Or that a few hundred years ago it was fashionable to style your hair with cat poo?! Find out the delightful, daft history of everyday life that your teachers won’t tell you about. This is history – but not as you know it!

There will be a BSL interpreter at this event

Come and join Rooted Forest School for outdoor family sessions inspired by the Forest School approach. We’ll use foraged materials to craft natural items that you can take away with you, taking part in some simple tool use and finishing off with a hot apple juice around the fire. These sessions are aimed at families and will run whatever the weather, so make sure you’re wrapped up for the conditions.

The story of animation stretches back to the early 1800s with the invention of spinning optical illusion devices such as the zoetrope. These days animation is everywhere from animated films, cartoons and GIFs to computer games and VR. But how did we get here? Learn about the origins of early animation and create your own loopy animation in this fun, hands-on workshop led by visual artists MASH Cinema.