Activities for children under 5
Find activities and groups for you and your pre-school age children.
Activities in our libraries
We offer a wide range of free activities at our libraries suitable for under 5’s. These include our regular Baby Boogies, and a Baby Boogie just for dads, stories, play, art and singing and more.
Bookstart
Every family in Brighton & Hove can get a free Bookstart Baby Pack for each child, before they're 12 months old, to encourage them to read.
A Bookstart Baby Pack includes 2 board books and a rhyme sheet. It also has a booklet of tips and ideas for sharing books with young children.
You should receive your pack from your Health Visitor or Family Hub.
If you don't have it, or you’d like more information, send an email to familyhubs@brighton-hove.gov.uk.
You can visit the BookTrust website for more information about Bookstart packs, as well as other helpful resources for parents.
Holiday Activities and Food
Our Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme provides free activities during the school Easter, summer, and winter holidays, for people who receive benefits-related free school meals.
Activities include sports, arts, music, personal development, and more.
Kids in Brighton
Kids in Brighton is a resource and community for those living in, or visiting, Brighton & Hove and the surrounding area with kids.
They have directories specifically aimed at parents with children under 5 including:
The Early Childhood Project
The Early Childhood Project is a Brighton & Hove-based charity that helps develop knowledge and skills to challenge and combat prejudice, discrimination and injustice in the lives of young children.
They have a toy library and everyone is welcome to borrow toys, books and resources from them.
Other ideas for activities for under 5's in Brighton & Hove
- Visit Brighton - find family-friendly things to do and accessibility information for many attractions.
- Brighton & Hove Museums - What's on, opening times and visitor information for Brighton & Hove museums.
- Parks and green spaces - Learn more about our local parks and green spaces, and find information on the city's playgrounds.
- Indoor activities for kids - ideas from the NHS for free indoor games and activities for children so they can still get the 60 minutes of daily physical activity
- Freedom 4 Kids - a range of activities for kids all across Brighton and Hove. From indoor play centres to sports tasters - there's plenty to keep kids active