Top tips: Free summer activity ideas for families

Supporting families with healthy eating is an important part of promoting children’s overall well-being. By building positive relationships and sharing simple, achievable strategies, you can help parents feel more confident in creating healthy eating habits at home that work for them and their children. 

Dummies can be a helpful way to comfort and settle babies, especially in the early months. However, as children grow, it’s important to balance dummy use with lots of opportunities to talk, listen and interact. These tips will help staff to support parents to make confident, informed decisions about when and how to use a dummy and how to reduce reliance on it over time. 

Reading with your child is one of the most valuable things you can do. It strengthens your bond, supports their learning and development, and most importantly - it’s fun!

Spending time outside, particularly in nature, is good for everyone, regardless of age. Outdoor play boosts children’s physical health and general well-being, while giving parents a chance to relax, connect and enjoy some quality time together. Here are some tips to support you in getting everyone outside!

Supporting new vocab through festivals/special days offers rich, exciting opportunities to build children’s vocabulary in meaningful ways. Celebrating festivals offers children the opportunity to explore new words, understand different traditions and feel proud of who they are. It also sparks curiosity about others and supports their confidence as communicators.

National Read a Book Day is in September – use the day to encourage children and families to get involved, share a story and spend some quality time together. Sharing stories boosts vocabulary, social skills and communication and language skills. Here are some tips to help parents instil a love of books at home.