Fun family activities for a London summer staycation

Go dancing with Denise Van Outen and the English National Ballet
The English National Ballet is hosting free dance workshops at Westfield London today from 11-12, 12.30-1.30 and 2-3 as part of Westfields ‘We Are LDN Summer’ campaign. At the workshops, children can experience the love of dance first-hand and tales from Coppelia, Swan Lake and Nutcracker. If you’re early, you can join TV presenter and actress Denise Van Outen and her daughter Betsy at the 11am workshop. There will also be workshops at Westfield Stratford City on Thursday 31 July.

Race through history at the Children’s Theatre Festival
Head to Canary Wharf on Satruday 2 August to catch the last performance of the Children’s Theatre Festival, featuring free family-friendly outdoor children’s theatre performances. At 4pm on Saturday 2 August, the West End family show Horrible Histories: Barmy Britain (Part One) will be on in Canada Square Park. The fun performance is open to children of all ages, but it’s particularly recommended for ages 6 and over.

Be a painting pirate or princess at The Pottery Café
Find your favourite costumes and make your way to The Pottery Café in Fulham, Battersea or Richmond, where there is no studio fee this summer holiday for anyone who dresses up as a pirate or princess. There are special edition pottery pieces to paint such as a princess, a unicorn and a dragon money box, and themed pirate and princess sponges. In addition, there’s an ‘X marks the spot’ summer colouring contest, where the aim is to colour and place the ‘X’ on the map entry form closest to where the treasure is hidden.

Tags: Ballet, Canary Wharf, Children's theatre, London, Pottery Cafe, Summer, Summer events, Westfield