Family Arts Festival

It won’t be long before the first half term of a new school year is upon us, bringing with it the opportunity to explore the rich range of family friendly events that London has to offer. And to make it even easier to plan your perfect autumn break, The Family Arts Festival is back for the second year running, bringing venues throughout London to life with an impressive array of activities for children of all ages. Here's our top picks.

Mini Music Maestros

Budding musical maestros will have plenty to keep them occupied with family workshops including the Royal Albert Hall’s exciting introduction to Blues Storytelling for Families and The Royal College of Music’s Family Discovery: The Great Classics

True to form, Cadogan Hall continues its high quality series of Saturday Spectaculars with an interactive Musical Metropolis family concert on 18th October, followed on November 1st by what promises to be a sure-fire festival highlight: Crash Bang Wallop! Magic & Mischief is an interactive orchestral concert based on A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which welcomes toddlers and babies as well as older children - though parents are sure to enjoy it just as much as the kids. The venue’s resident City of London Sinfonia are well-practised in delivering engaging and memorable family experiences, and this delightful marriage of Shakespeare’s words with music by the likes of Mendelssohn, Tchaikovsky and Debussy is not to be missed.

But for a chance to see your family’s hard work and learning brought to life by the very musicians who facilitate it, catch the BBC Symphony Orchestra’s workshop and concert offer at the Barbican on Friday 24th October. During the free workshop at 6pm you are invited to join some of Orchestra’s musicians as they share their talent and insight, as well and providing a sneak preview of the music featured in the concert. Participating families are welcome to bring their musical instruments along, and have the opportunity to book themselves a set of £5 tickets to the performance itself at 7pm, which will include Stravinsky’s The Firebird as well as music by Grieg, Strauss and Sibelius.

Crafty Workshops

There are also plenty of opportunities for visually artistic kids to get creative, with workshops like the V&A’s program of sessions inspired by the work of John Constable. Here participants will get the chance to use digital media as well as collage to learn about landscapes and create their own artwork. Both The Imagination Station and Digital Kids are free, full day sessions open to children of all ages. The Museum of London also offers a plethora of creative family sessions inviting kids to bring history to life by reimagining ancient wildlife. These include Furry Sculptures and Dressed to Impress and are plenty more free, drop-in sessions.

Lovers of all things spooky will delight in RIBA’s Halloween themed activities, with a chance to create their own Ghoulish Grand Designs from craft materials and to lose themselves in a few Haunted Tales, told by story-telling supremo, The Crick Crack Club’s Ben Haggarty. Both activities take inspiration from RIBA’s exhibition on the photography of Edwin Smith, which runs from 10th September to the 6th December.

All this and more is on offer to your family in late October; book now to avoid disappointment.