Summer sorted with the National Trust’s Summer of Play

Have a summer packed with adventure and imagination with the National Trust’s Summer of Play, sponsored by Starling Bank. Kicking off in July and taking place over the summer holidays, Summer of Play activities will have a family-festival feel set against the backdrop of the National Trust’s historic houses and beautiful gardens.

Head to Dunham Massey, Quarry Bank, Lyme, Speke Hall and more to play together and find places jam-packed with games and experiences. Let imaginations run wild with role play and mini stages, unlock limitless possibilities to design and build with craft zones, make art and music with nature’s materials, or slip away to a cosy book nook.

Designed for families, Summer of Play activities will be dotted around large meadows, woodlands and garden areas, so there’ll be plenty of space to enjoy the games and activities as well as picnicking spots, shady rest areas and of course, toilets, cafés and pop-ups offering food and drink.

There’s plenty to see and do and what’s more, every visit helps to support the National Trust’s work as a charity looking after special places for everyone, for ever.

To find out more or plan a visit head to: nationaltrust.org.uk/cheshire and nationaltrust.org.uk/liverpool.

Cheshire and Greater Manchester 

nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/cheshire-greater-manchester/family-friendly

Quarry Bank, Wilmslow

- Summer of Play, 19 July – 1 September 
- Brand-new indoor play hub with soft play, giant board games, fancy dress and a stage 
- Outside you’ll find a maze, loose parts play and nature bingo

Come rain or shine, there’s fun for all the family at Quarry Bank. Inside the huge mill, there's a brand-new Play Hub where little ones can dress up, put on puppet shows, dive into soft play and enjoy giant board games. Older kids can get stuck into traditional games and crafts too.

Outside, on the Mill Meadow you can play nature bingo, race through the maze or build your own adventure. Enjoy a picnic on tables in the playground near the Mill Yard – or pull up a deck chair and treat yourself to an ice cream from the Stables Ice Cream Parlour.

And with Magic Mondays, Travel Tuesdays, Woodland Wednesdays, Theatre Thursdays, Fitness Fridays and Wild Weekends – there's something new for you to try every time you visit.

Admission charges apply (£21 adult, £10.50 child, £52.50 family, free entry for under 5s, carers and National Trust members). No additional event charges.

Summer at Quarry Bank

Dunham Massey, Altrincham

- Summer of Play, 20 June – 7 September  
- Themed activities every day of the week from 19 July – 31 August 
- From arts and crafts to circus skills and storytelling 
- Log pile natural play area

Dunham Massey, near Manchester, is full of playful adventures this summer. Follow the colourful bunting to the Play Hub in the North Park where you’ll find giant deck chairs, a tipi and games to play with the whole family. And from circus skills to fancy dress, there's lots of different activities to try every day of the week.

Climb and clamber over the Log Pile natural play area and spot fallow deer roaming the parkland. For a moment of quieter imagination, head inside the house and follow Speechly’s grand tour. Fill hungry tummies with a woodfired pizza and keep the adventures going.

Admission charges apply (£17 adult, £8.50 child, £42.50 family, free entry for under 5s, carers and National Trust members). No additional event charges.

Summer at Dunham Massey

Lyme, Stockport

- Summer of Play, 18 July–7 September 
- Experience the locations of Pride & Prejudice through the eyes of a child 
- Recreate an explorer’s travels through Egypt 
- Silent pond disco, reading corner, nature-themed board games

Fill a full day at Lyme on the edge of the Peak District. There’s pushchair-friendly paths and adventurous trails to explore. Every day this summer stories will come to life through the world of play.

In the garden, gallop your way from Netherfield to Meryton and experience the locations of Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice through the eyes of a child. Inside the house you can play with shadow puppets and recreate the Egyptian adventures of Thomas Legh, an explorer who lived at Lyme. And at the Boiler House, you can attend the Riverlands Silent Pond Disco, curl up with a book in the nature reading corner and play nature-themed board games.

The Timber Yard Café near the Crow Wood play area serves tasty treats from children’s lunch boxes and sandwiches to ice cream scoops.

Normal admission applies (£17 adult, £8.50 child, £42.50 family, free entry for under 5s, carers and National Trust members). No additional event charges.

Summer at Lyme

Hare Hill, Macclesfield

- Summer of Play, 19 July–31 August 
- Water Wonders Trail 
- Safe space for little ones to run free

This tranquil wooded garden is perfect for kids to explore without crowds. Inside the walled garden you’ll find picnic spots and a big lawn for little ones to explore. See what wildlife you can spot on the flat, pushchair friendly paths – the bird hide is the perfect place to start your adventure. Or you can build, climb and balance in the natural woodland play area.

This summer go with the flow and follow the self-led Water Wonders trail though the gardens at Hare Hill. Inspired by the National Trust’s Riverlands, a project that aims to improve the health of the River Bollin across Cheshire, you can find ways to become a guardian of the water too.

Normal admission applies (£9 adult, £4.50 child, £22.50 family, free entry for under 5s, carers and National Trust members). No additional event charges.

Summer at Hare Hill

Little Moreton Hall, Congleton

- Summer of Play, 19 July–31 August 
- Games from the past 
- Children’s archery 
- Topsy-turvy Tudor manor

This topsy-turvy Tudor manor house is full of wonky angles and quirky character, and this summer you can have fun exploring a blast from the past trail of play. Travel through time, without the need for a time machine, from Tudor period to present day, as you delve into the history of games in the outdoors. Will you come across a familiar favourite or discover a new game to give a go? Or discover your inner Robin Hood with archery sessions for all the family.

Normal admission applies (£15 adult, £7.50 child, £37.50 family, free entry for under 5s, carers and National Trust members). No additional event charges.

 Summer at Little Moreton Hall

 Liverpool and Lancashire

Summer in Liverpool & Lancashire

Speke Hall, Liverpool

- Summer of Play, 21 July–31 August 
-Tudor manor house and grounds 
- Woodland play area
- Accessible gated play area and sensory resource station

Find games galore in the grounds of this Tudor manor house as Speke Hall transforms into a vibrant festival of fun for families. From mud pie making to running races, building and creating, or getting cosy with a good book from the second-hand bookshop, there’s lots of ways for families to play together.

Explore the historic grounds, let imaginations run wild in the accessible gated play area, build dens in the woodland, or zoom through the air on the zipwire. Stop by the sensory resource station in the Visitor Centre to borrow fidget toys, ear defenders and other sensory items while you visit.

Normal admission charges apply (£19 adult, £9.50 child, £47.50 family, free entry for under 5s, carers and National Trust members). No additional event charges.

 Summer at Speke Hall

 Rufford Old Hall near Ormskirk, Lancashire

- Summer of Play, 18 July–1 September 
- Sports activities including cricket, rounders, tennis, croquet and more 
- Dress up in suits of armour 
- Nature backpacks and balance bikes available to borrow

There’s plenty to see and do for families at this Tudor house in Lancashire. From exploring the garden in style on a balance bike to spotting wildlife on the canal, there’s plenty of room to let imaginations run free.

Enjoy an abundance of garden games and self-led activities this summer. Head to the Orchard Paddock and take part in free sports activities including cricket, rounders, tennis, croquet and more. From the Coach House you can collect a sports day kit box which includes instructions, skipping ropes, hula hoops, race markers, beanbags and more.

Normal admission applies (£12 adult, £6 child, £30 family, under 5s go free, free entry for under 5s, carers and National Trust members). No additional event charges.

Summer at Rufford Old Hall