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Explore YSP this October half term

Explore YSP this October half term

Keep curious minds entertained with indoor and outdoor activities for the whole family to get stuck into this October half term.

Whatever the weather, YSP is the perfect place to enjoy and connect with the great outdoors, to spend time with friends and family soaking up art and nature, spotting seasonal changes and animals preparing for the cooler months ahead. 

There's lots to see and do outdoors and indoors whatever the weather. Discover exhibitions in our indoor galleries by Olivia Bax, Nicola Turner and Annie Montgomerie, plus Hold to This Earth in the Peter Murray Gallery, bringing together 65 works by 38 contemporary Indigenous North American artists from Tia Collection. 

Visit The Studio in the Peter Murray Gallery, a fantastic creative space for everyone to create, play and learn with props and materials inspired by Hold to This Earth,  plus Little Wild Wood, our outdoor creative play space, where little ones can burn off some energy. 

Delicious food and drink is available as always, across our outlets to eat in or enjoy while you explore. For lunch, stop off at the Kitchen Cafe where you can get a special £5 meal deal for kids or warm up with a hot chocolate on cooler days. 

Kids go FREE and parking is FREE too.

A smiling adult in a blue top and cap interacts with a young child wearing a yellow jacket and black hat. The child holds a wooden mallet, standing under a large red bell hanging from a tree, surrounded by a playful outdoor setting.

October half term in the Hidden Forest

29 and 30 October, 11.00–15.00

Visit the magical Hidden Forest and follow your child’s imagination as they explore, create and play under a canopy of trees. Designed with under-5s in mind but all welcome.

A young girl with braided hair is building a tower of blocks with her father in a bright, colourful room. Other children are visible in the background.

The Studio

Daily, 11.00–16.00

Visit The Studio in the Peter Murray Gallery to enjoy drawing, making and chatting together, using playful gallery resources inspired by the themes and artworks in Hold to This Earth.

Little Wild Wood

Daily, 10.00–18.00

Discover Little Wild Wood - our natural creative play space, designed to inspire imaginations, somewhere for the kids to connect to sculpture and nature at their level.

Explore exhibitions

  1. A small clay sculpture of a person building themselves out of raw clay. An abstract painting in shades of orange and a figure sculpture can be seen in the background.

    Hold to This Earth: Works by Contemporary Indigenous North American Artists from Tia Collection

    –
    Headlining our 2026 programme is a major presentation of work by contemporary Indigenous American artists from Tia Collection.
    Gallery opening times: 11.00–16.00
  2. Two abstract sculptures are displayed in a gallery. One features a large red spherical head atop a colorful, cart-like base, while the other resembles a whimsical machine with various shapes and textures, both set against a white wall.

    Olivia Bax: Double Take

    –
    Double Take is a colourful new exhibition of 20 new and recent sculptures by Olivia Bax.
    Gallery open 11.00–16.00
  3. A woman wearing black works on a large installation made from twisting textile forms, in a brightly lit gallery space.

    Nicola Turner: Time’s Scythe

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    Time’s Scythe is a brand-new installation by British artist Nicola Turner that breathes new life into the 18th-century Chapel.
    Gallery opening time: 11.00–16.00
  4. A close-up shot of a handmade dog puppet, dressed in a blue coat and patterned dress, standing against a pink wall. A painted dog figure is visible in the background.

    Annie Montgomerie: Missies and Nippers

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    Following her sell-out show Hand Me Downs in 2022, Annie Montgomerie returns to YSP with a new exhibition Missies and Nippers.
    Gallery opening times: 10.00–18.00
  5. A person sits sketching in a bright, airy corridor of a museum. Large, colourful, sculptural artworks hang from the ceiling, creating a dynamic display.

    Jakob Rowlinson: ROTATOR

    –
    Jakob Rowlinson presents three large-scale leather sculptures that act as guardians of the threshold between indoors and outdoors at YSP Centre.
    YSP Centre open 10.00–18.00