Friday Fledglings – 29th September

Join us for a fun and friendly session for under-5s in the fantastic garden at The MERL

Discover the benefits of outdoor learning and child-led play at Friday Fledglings! Come and join in with activities inspired by the themes and collections of the museum, and enjoy exploring nature, our mud kitchen, water play, sand-pit, and more. Led by Charlotte, a local teacher and Level 3 Forest Leader, each session includes story-telling, craft activities, singing, and a snack.

Sessions run only during RBC school term time. All are welcome to come along: parents, grandparents and childminders!

Find out more about the sessions: Discover Friday Fledglings at The MERL

Age suitability

The session is suitable for children aged approximately 18 months+ but you are welcome to join us sooner.

Tickets

Sessions are run on a weekly pay-as-you-go basis but tend to sell out fast so booking is recommended. As before, bookings open at 12 pm on a Friday, one week ahead of the session you’d like to attend. Bookings will close at 11.59pm, the evening before each session.

• Please follow the ‘Book now’
• Book and pay for the number of ‘participating child’ tickets that you require (once you’ve selected the ticket option; you can increase the number of tickets needed)
• We will only be able to accept refunds up to 24 hours before the event start time (before 10am each Thursday). To request a refund, please email merlevents@reading.ac.uk
• If you can no longer attend and wish to pass on your ticket to another family, we recommend using the Friday Fledglings group to do this. We are unable to facilitate these transactions.

Bookings open from 12 pm on 22nd September 2023.

What to bring

• Suitable clothing for all-weather outdoor session
• Your own drinking water for story time
• We will serve bananas and biscuits as a snack or bring your own if you prefer

Parking arrangements for Friday Fledglings attendees

If The MERL car park is full, you can use a special parking permit to park in the University car parks on Acacia Road adjacent to the museum, or White Gates car park off Crown Place. This permit is valid for all sessions in a half term.

View the car park locations, driving and walking routes.

Current parking permit 

Please collect a permit from reception at the museum or you can download and print the current permit.

If you do not display a permit, you may be issued with a penalty. We apologise for any inconvenience, but this solution means we can continue to offer free parking in the nearby University car parks. If you have any questions, please call 0118 378 8660 or email merlevents@reading.ac.uk

Parking is limited at the museum and although we do our best to help those who need to come by car find a space, we would always encourage you to use alternative means of transport where possible.

See our Getting Here page for details.