It is almost the summer school holidays and we can't wait for six whole weeks of lazy days!  It sounds so perfect in my mind, but in reality the children really do need something to do each day, and that's where Squire's Garden Centres and the fantastic Create and Grow activities come in.

We live close to a Squire's and we're always in there for every school break doing their activities.  It's such an easy way to spend a day, it doesn't cost a lot of money, and the children get to bring home their creations which they are always very proud of.  This summer break they are doing a variety of different activities as part of the Create and Grow program at Squire's.  There are 6 different activities, one for each week of the summer holidays, starting on the 22nd July and finishing on the 28th August.  The activities are available on Mondays and Tuesdays (and Wednesdays at some locations) from 9:30am - 12:30pm and the cost ranges from £2.50 - £6 per child.  There is also a free activity to take part in each week.  For more details of each week's activities and the participating locations take a look at the Create and Grow information page.


We were lucky to be invited in for a sneak peek and to make some strawberry pots for the garden.  We were welcomed to a lovely table all set up with huge terracotta pots and lots of colourful paints to get started.  The staff member who was there (Tallulah) was so kind and helpful to the children throughout the process.


The children couldn't wait to paint these pots and got stuck right in.  Ethan decided to paint different plants and flowers all around his pot.


While Ivy went for a more abstract design.  She absolutely loved it though and was so focussed, she could have sat there for ages painting!


Once they had finished painting they then filled up their pots with soil.


Next they got to choose three strawberry plants, and Tallulah taught them how to carefully remove the plants from their holders and repot them in their pots.




They then added more soil and were finished!



We left the pots on the table to dry and they were ready to bring home.


These will need some sort of varnish to keep the paint on the pots, but otherwise they are ready to put in the garden and grow some delicious strawberries!  The children are so proud that they've made these themselves.  We will definitely be heading back to Squire's throughout the summer to do some of the other activities.

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* This is a review post, we were invited to try out the Squire's Create & Grow activities in advance in order to write this post, all opinions are our own.*