School's out for Summer!

What can a parent living in the Shepton Mallet area do to occupy their children in the Summer Holidays?  This was the plea I put out to friends of mine on Facebook last week. I love Summer Holidays but any parent knows that the energy a child usually expends at School will soon be going spare.  Its your job to make sure that your little darlings are entertained, but many of us are on limited budgets and at best can afford one of those more ‘treat-like’ days out very occasionally.

It is this time of year I really appreciate living in the Countryside.  If you want to and can get out of Town, there are many beauty spots, like the forests on Mendip, Emborough Pond, or Burrington Combe.  In town we have our marvelous Park.  The biggest tip I can personally offer is not to overlook what we have around us and for free!  

One suggestion that came back from a friend was Geocaching.  This is like a high-tech game of treasure hunt that you can play with a satnav or GPS equipped smart-phone and can be a great excuse for the family to get out and about and get some fresh air, possibly leading to a picnic or other treats.  Lots of info can be found with a quick web search, or you can check out geocaching.com as an example.  Items get left around the country and its your job to find them and to pick up clues as to the next location.  It’s not something I’ve tried, but mixing ‘tech’ and outdoor pursuits sounds like an inviting idea.

Longleat never seems to wear thin with my Daughter or her cousins.  It can be costly but if you make use of all that your ticket pays for (and take a picnic rather than buy when you get there), its can be a full-on wholesome day out!   A friend reminded me that if you save up your Tesco clubcard points, you can exchange them online for passes (‘passports’) to Longleat, as well as a whole host of other attractions - saving a lot of money in the process.

Further afield, this part of the region has animal rescue centre’s, play farm’s and even beaches.  Sticking in Shepton Mallet though, we have far more to do than you might imagine.  We have an excellent 25m outdoor swimming pool with separate children’s pool out at West Shepton (the Lido), opening times and prices can be found on the Avalon Leisure website.

We also have Shepton Mallet Leisure Centre.  Here your children can sign up for the year-round Fit and Active membership, which will enable them to use all of the centre’s facilities.  Specifically for summer though, there is ‘Active Kids’ (6-14yrs).  

I thought this would just be sports, which does play a part but it also includes a vast number of activities from theatrical fun, entertaining science (how about a vinegar volcano?!), a bouncy castle and trips out. Details can be obtained from the Leisure Centre on 01749 346644.

For the footy minded, Bristol City Football Club are holding three one week Soccer Fun events.  They will be running between 9.15-15.15.  Each day costs £10 or you get 5 whole days for £45 (full weeks bookings before 16th July get a £5 discount!).  For information and to book, ring Terry on 01749 342431

If the rain should fall or you just want an indoors day, for younger children, there is Neptunes softplay in the Market Place. For larger children, I would suggest going further afield, possibly to Junction 21 in Frome, or to Yeovil for Jungle Jungle or Rug Ratz.  Wells Film Centre is surprisingly good value and always has the latest films (details here)

Last but not least, there are two particular events that my Summer would not be complete without.  Shepton Mallet’s own ‘Mid Somerset Show’ (Sunday 15th August - details can be found on their website) and Nunney’s ‘Street Fayre’ (Saturday 7th August, 10.00-17.30).  Both are free and huge hits with Children and Adults alike.  You will probably be under some pressure to pay for rides and ‘go’s’ on things, but you can happily take a picnic and just enjoy the events.

Heres hoping for a Summer that continues to bless us with fine weather, and one where the Children are kept busy and entertained!

Do you have any other suggestions?  Is there yet more? If you represent a club or group that might be of interest during the Summer Holidays or beyond, let us know!