A Roman Invasion at Wroxeter Roman City (25 – 26 May)

Witness the might of the Roman Army as it invades Wroxeter Roman City over the Bank Holiday weekend!

Tremble in the face of the world famous Ermine Street Guard as they set up camp in Wroxeter’s ancient grounds, and be transported back to an age of invading legions, cut throat centurions and fearsome siege machines.

The armoured ranks of the Ermine Street Guard will invade Wroxeter on Sunday 25 and Monday 26 May – almost 2,000 years since the Roman Conquest of Britain. The Guard will transport visitors back in time to ancient ‘Viroconium’, as Wroxeter was known to the Romans, as their colourful legion demonstrate the combat skills, battle tactics and artillery power which made the Roman army such a formidable fighting force.

Alongside enjoying displays of army tactics and skill, visitors will be able to explore the encampment and talk to the mighty imperial roman army about life on the road. There will family friendly tours of the Roman Town House, tales of monsters and heroes in story-telling sessions, and the chance for budding young centurions to see if they’ve got what it takes to join the guard in children’s battles and games.

Prices: Adult £6.60 / Child £4.00 / Concession £6.00 / Family £17.10 / Members: Adult £1.20 / Child £0.80 / Concession £1.10 / Family £3.10.

Celebrate Queen Victoria’s 81st birthday (24 – 26 May)

Join the residents of Blists Hill Victorian Town in Shropshire’s Ironbridge Gorge over the Whitsun bank holiday weekend of 24 – 26 May as they celebrate the 81st birthday of their much loved Queen Victoria with great pomp and pageantry.

The town will be decorated in patriotic style and each day will be a fitting tribute to the gracious lady and her long reign with an extravaganza of colour, music and street entertainment. Watch live re-enactments of scenes from popular plays by the Prince Albert Players and listen to sessions by the bagpipe players and drummers from the Seaforth Highlanders band in full Scottish costume. Go along to the New Inn and join in a lively sing-a-long with the pub’s music hall entertainers or talk to ‘Victorian soldiers’ and descendants of those who fought in the Anglo-Zulu war Battle of Rorke’s Drift from the Ibutho Living History Group, who will also speak about military life in the late 1800s.

Younger visitors can watch a traditional Punch and Judy show by professional puppeteer Richard Coombs or search for lost toys hidden around the town, with a lolly reward for those who complete the trail. There will also be hands-on activities in the Goods Shed where children can play games and try creative skills from a bygone era such as candle dipping.

Open 10am – 5pm on Saturday 24 May and 10am – 6pm on Sunday 25 and Monday 26 May, Blists Hill is one of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums.

Dudmaston Spring Gardening Fair (24 – 26 May)

The National Trust’s Dudmaston Estate will be hosting their inaugural Spring Gardening fair this weekend, whilst also supporting the work of the National Gardens Scheme.

The property, situated approximately 3 miles outside of Bridgnorth in Shropshire, will have lots of gardening themed activities to keep everyone entertained; beginning on Saturday, 24 May when all admission fees to the property will be donated to the National Gardens Scheme and, although the Hall will not be open, visitors will have the opportunity to visit the private areas of the garden cared for by Mark Hamilton-Russell and his family.

The festivities will continue for 3 days and visitors will be able to find out answers to their gardening questions and take part in lots of gardening fun; including challenging our gardener by planting pumpkin seeds to see who can grow the largest pumpkin to enter into the property’s Produce Show later in the year. There will also be the opportunity to join Outback2basics creating bug houses and building a giant bug and visitors will be able to browse the various garden themed stall holders, taking home something for their own gardens to remember their day.

Taking flight in the Pride Hill Centre (28,29 May)

Flight-themed workshops at Shrewsbury’s Pride Hill Shopping Centre are sure to see a host of creative dreams take off this half term.

The free arts and crafts sessions will be the perfect launch pad for budding high fliers as participants get a chance to join in kite-making sessions, paper aeroplane design and even build their own windmill.

People of all ages are encouraged to wing their way over to the lower level of the Pride Hill Centre for the workshops, held over two days during school half term week – on Wednesday and Thursday, May 28 and 29, from 11am-4pm. The fun sessions are aimed at all skill levels and will be led by professional artist Chris Wright.

Paints, brushes and all equipment needed to decorate a kite in a rainbow of colours will be provided, in readiness to send the finished flying machine skywards into the spring sunshine.

Those who prefer to keep their feet firmly on the ground can simply give their imaginations free rein by drawing a flight-related picture, such as a dragonfly or a damsel fly.

Garden and bug themed ceramic workshops at Coalport China Museum

Garden and bug themed ceramic family workshops and activities are being staged at Coalport China Museum in Shropshire’s Ironbridge Gorge during the May school half-term.

Go along on Monday 26th May and join drop-in workshops to decorate a mug with a garden inspired theme, while from Tuesday to Friday, 27th – 30th May, try your hand at sculpting a bughouse, plant marker or sundial from terracotta clay. You can also paint a delicate china flower or join in some paper based activities.

The half-term workshops at Coalport China Museum will be held from 11am until 1pm and 2pm until 4pm; ceramic activities carry an additional fee from £4, plus a postage charge from £3, if you want to have your creation sent home after firing.

Open 10am to 5pm Coalport is one of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums. A great value Annual Passport Ticket allowing entry into all ten museums, valid for twelve months and unlimited return visits, costs £27.50 per adult, £21 for the 60 plus, £16.50 for students and children and £68 for a family of two adults and all their children aged up to 18 years in full time education (terms and conditions apply); under 5s free.

Activity camps for young people during half term week

Telford & Wrekin Council is holding activity camps for young people in the borough during half term week.

The three days of camps for eight to 14 year olds run from Wednesday May 28 to Friday May 30 and a 15 per cent discount and free cinema ticket is available for anyone booking all three.

Day one focuses on outdoor pursuits and takes place between 9am and 4pm on Wednesday 28 May at the Arthog Outreach Short Wood Centre. The cost is £25 for Telford Loyalty Card (TLC) holders and £31 for those who do not have a TLC. Activities will include climbing, bush craft, kayaking and team building.

Day two on Thursday May 29 takes place at the Phoenix Sports and Leisure Centre and activities include trampolining, BMX, football, basketball, table tennis, rounders and gym sessions. It takes place between 9am and 4pm and costs £20 for TLC holders and £25 for those without a TLC.

Day three takes place on Friday May 30 and is a Telford Town Park adventure. Activities include crazy golf, ice skating, high ropes and climbing. It also runs from 9am to 4pm and costs £30 for TLC holders and £37 for those without a TLC.

Advanced booking and payment is required. For more information contact Wellington Civic & Leisure Centre on 01952 382720.

Energy on the Move workshops at Enginuity (2 May – 1 June)

Discover more about different types of energy and how its transferred at the drop-in Energy on the Move family workshops to be held at Enginuity, near Ironbridge during the spring half-term school holiday from Saturday 24 May until Sunday 1 June.

Activities will include using craft materials and an electric motor to make a fun ‘dancing jitterbug’ and then see how it transfers electrical energy into kinetic energy as it moves around. Families will be able to use a variety of materials to decorate their jitterbug, such as lolly sticks, tissue paper and brightly coloured card. Workshops will be held daily between 10.30am and 3.45pm; activities will vary from day-to-day and jitterbugs will cost £2.50 each in addition to the museum entrance fee.

Half Term Adventures at Attingham Park

Visitors to Attingham Park will be spoilt for choice this May Half Term with a packed programme of activities ranging from family trails, making a bird feeder to climbing and canoeing.

Little explorers can hunt for brave heroes and scary villains that have found their way from the pages of fairy tales at Attingham’s Family Trails, or unscramble the clues to discover what strange characters lurk in the mysterious woodland wonderland.

Families with older adventurers can put their map reading skills to the test with an orienteering course and hunt for hidden locations around the grounds – they can also win a prize to take home as a reward. Family and Orienteering Trails run from 24 May – 1 June, from 10am – 4pm. All trails are £2.50 and include a prize.

The Walled Garden team will be showcasing the range of salad plants grown on site on Sunday 25 May. Visitors can drop in between 11am and 3pm to discover the range of leaves on offer and sow a pot to grow and harvest at home.

Families will have the chance to get messy at Trusty’s Tuesday Club on 27 May and make a bird cake to take home and hang in the garden to give the birds a treat. Young bird spotters can make an identification dial to spot the birds that visit their feeder. Families can drop by between 10am and 4pm, with a charge of just £2.50 per child.

There are also a range of sporting activities on offer including the chance to see the park from a new angle for those who make it to the top of the climbing wall on Wednesday 28 May, when families can also get competitive and enjoy some old fashioned fun and games including sack races on the play field. Climbing is just £3 each, with full instruction, making it a great way to find a new favourite sport with no experience needed.

The popular Trusty’s Thursday Picnic makes a return for the first time this year on Thursday 29 May. Families can bring along a picnic and rug between 11am – 2pm and enjoy games and listen to the storyteller weave his fantastical tales.

Standard grounds admission charges apply to all events. Admission to the grounds is free for National Trust members and under 5s.

Family activities at Blists Hill Victorian Town (24 May – 1 June)

Go along to Blists Hill Victorian Town during the May half-term and take part in a variety of fun drop-in activities from dipping fabulously colourful candles and building a wall with mini-bricks to discovering Morse Code and colouring in pictures of Victorian scenes.

The fascinating museum in Shropshire’s Ironbridge Gorge, where life over 100 years ago is recreated, will be staging the activities from Saturday 24 May until Sunday 1 June; sessions take place from 10.15am-1pm and 1.30pm-4pm.

Children from five years and upwards will enjoy using liquid wax in primary colours to create striped multi-coloured candles; they can also see a full demonstration of candle making in a similar process to that used back in the Victorian period. Youngsters trying the mini-brick laying activity can learn how to build a wall using different ‘brick bonds’ to see which gives the strongest walls, afterwards they can spot the different patterns as they walk around the Town. Over at the Post Office, they can see how telegrams would have been sent using Morse Code before tapping out their own messages on a telegraph key. Both these activities are best for the over sevens, while the Colouring Corner is for all ages, where youngster will find paper sheets featuring images of places around the Town to be coloured-in.

Open 10am to 5pm Blists Hill is one of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums.

Half-term fun at Severn Valley Country Park

For the upcoming May 2014 half-term holiday, things are getting sporty at Shropshire Council’s Severn Valley Country Park.

On Wednesday 28 May we will be asking our younger visitors to compete in the Severn Valley Sports Day. The park rangers will be challenging children to throw a javelin and discus, compete in the sack race, score goals against our expert goalkeeper, and get involved in the other events which will be on offer.

On Friday 30 May there will be the chance to have some school holiday outdoor fun. At the country park there will be space hoppers, giant crazy golf, swing ball and lots of other great games to play.

Also, on each Saturday of the holiday (24 May and 31 May) there will be a craft session in the visitor centre. Children will be able to make a number of items (rainbow mobile, bumble bee, scary spider and more), which they can take home at the end of the session.

Throughout the school holidays, there will be a self-led children’s trail which will be looking for signs of spring around the park. As families follow the clues, they will be able to work out a common phrase related to spring, and on their return to the visitor centre will win a small prize. Trail maps are £1.50 each.

The visitor centre and teashop will be open 11am-5pm every day of the school holidays, including Bank Holiday Monday.

The children’s activities are £3 per child, adults free. Please call 01746 781192 for more details and to book your place.

Wednesday – Sports Day is 10am-12pm and 1.30pm-3.30pm.
Friday – Fun Games is 11am-12.30pm and 2pm-3.30pm.
Saturday – Crafts is 11am-12.30pm.
Severn Valley Country Park is near Alveley, Bridgnorth, Shropshire, WV15 6NG.

Jackfield Tile Museum Decorating Workshops (24, 26 – 30 May)

Let your imagination run wild this half-term at informal, spring themed tile decorating workshops at Jackfield Tile Museum in Shropshire’s Ironbridge Gorge.

Create your own designs inspired by the Museum’s beautiful tile collection at these fun drop in sessions, which will take place on Saturday 24th May and again from Monday 26th to Friday 30th May. The Victorian tube lining technique will be used to decorate the tiles, which are priced from £5 per tile (p&p extra to have your tile sent home after firing) plus the Museum admission fee. Workshops start from 10am, but allowing up to 1½ hours to decorate your tile, last admission is at 3.15pm.

Open 10am to 5pm Jackfield Tile Museum is one of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums.