Half term in England and Wales often falls in the last week of October, and the weather can be unpredictable. The trouble with a rainy day isn't a lack of ideas. It's that nobody can think of one at nine in the morning with everyone already bored. A short list made in advance, sorted by how much energy it needs, turns a wet day into a choice rather than a scramble.

The quick answer

• Make the list before half term, with everyone adding ideas
• Sort it by energy: burn it off, make something, calm down, or go out anyway
• Pick from the right group for how everyone's feeling that morning
• Keep most of it free, and save the paid treat for the wettest day

In Wales, autumn half term runs Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026. Many schools in England use the same week, but dates can vary, so check your own school.

Sort ideas by energy, not by activity

The same idea can be perfect at ten in the morning and a disaster at four in the afternoon. Sorting by energy makes it easy to pick the right thing for the moment:

• Burn it off: a living-room obstacle course, a dance-off, balloon keepy-uppy, hide and seek, a puddle walk in wellies and waterproofs
• Make something: a den from sofa cushions and blankets, junk modelling from the recycling, baking biscuits, a comic strip, a simple kitchen-table science experiment, like a bicarbonate of soda volcano with adult supervision
• Calm down: an audiobook and colouring, a jigsaw, a card game you can teach them, writing and posting a letter to a grandparent, a film with a homemade snack
• Go out anyway: the library, which often runs free half-term activities, a free museum, a covered market, or a walk with a hot chocolate at the end

Many museums and libraries offer free entry or free half-term activities, depending on where you live. Check what's on nearby before the week starts, as some need booking.

Make the list together, before the rain

Use the forecast to plan around the rain

A rainy forecast doesn't always mean rain all day. If you can see when the dry spells are, you can save the park or the walk for then and keep the indoor ideas for the rest. In Petal Home, the forecast shows the hour-by-hour weather, the weekend outlook and, when there's a dry spell coming, the best time for outdoor plans, so you can fit a trip outside into the driest part of the day.

Keep the cost down

• Use what you have: the recycling box, old magazines, the dressing-up basket and the baking cupboard go a long way
• Swap with friends: host one morning, then let another family host the next
• Save the paid treat for the wettest, longest day, like swimming, a trip to the cinema or soft play
• Bake something to eat later: it fills an hour, and it's a snack as well