February Half Term at Wakefield Museums and Castles

Discover the weird world of legendary medieval monsters this half term at Pontefract Castle!

Bring your budding monster hunters and follow a trail to find the fantastical creatures. Discover their stories and what they meant to people in the past. Explore the magical castle grounds and complete challenges as you go. It’ll be a beast of a day out! Pick your trail sheets up from the Gift Shop.

At Pontefract Castle

Saturday 15, Sunday 16 and Wednesday 19-Sunday 23 February, 10am-3pm each day.

Ages: 6+

Free – no booking required.

Calling all museum detectives!

Come to Castleford Museum this February half term to investigate some of the museum’s most mysterious objects. Uncover the clues, follow a trail, and get crafty, inspired by marvellous objects from the past.

At Castleford Museum

Monday 17, Tuesday 18, and Thursday 20 February with a relaxed SEND session on Friday 21 February*, 10am to 3pm each day.

Ages: 6+

Cost: Free – no booking required

*SEND families are welcome at all of Wakefield Museums and Castles sessions. They are also running this session for groups that prefer a more relaxed atmosphere.

Did you know that there are so many amazing colours that can be created from plants? Join the team at Pontefract Castle for a workshop investigating natural dyes, inks and stains.

Learn about anthotype photography. Discover some of the first types of photography by creating prints from the sun and natural stains.
This STEM workshop is funded by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

At Pontefract Castle Activity Zone

Monday 17 February, 10am-12pm.

Ages: 6+

£2.50 per child, accompanying adults free.

Book Colour Chemistry from Nature’s Rainbow (for SEND families)

Are you ready to put on a show this February half term? Oh, yes you are! Glitzy panto props are central to a good pantomime. From Aladdin’s lamp to fairy wands, pantomimes are full of fantastical objects. These props help bring stories to life in a magical way.

Be inspired by the wonderful worlds created by the St Giles with St Mary’s Pantomime Society in Pontefract Museum’s new interactive exhibition.

Make your own razzle dazzle pantomime treasure chest full of deceptively shiny jewellery and treasures!

At Pontefract Museum

Wednesday 19 February, 10.30am-12.30pm and 1pm-3pm

Ages: 3+

Cost: Free – no booking required

Get crafty with clay and try medieval tile techniques at Pontefract Castle!

Mystical creatures and monsters were very important to people in the Middle Ages. Learn more about these medieval legends, and what the beasts represented. Use medieval tile making techniques and found materials to create your own coaster using clay and slip.

At Pontefract Castle Activity Zone

Wednesday 19 February, 10.30am and a relaxed SEND session at 1pm*

Ages: 6 to 11

Cost: £2.50 per child, accompanying adults free.

Book Clay Coaster Creatures

*SEND families are welcome at all of Wakefield Museums and Castles sessions. They are also running this session for groups that prefer a more relaxed atmosphere. It will have reduced numbers and there will be more space.

Multisensory fun for tiny hands! Get messy in this special creative session for ages 2 to 5 in Wakefield Museum‘s Learning Zone.

Have fun joining in with the session’s sweet story and rhyme times. Make splodgy rhubarb potions with herbs and different colours. Create a rhubarb-tastic craft to take home!

At Wakefield Museum Learning Zone (inside Wakefield Library)

Thursday 20 February , 10.30am-11.30am, and relaxed session at 1pm-2pm*

Ages: 2 to 5

Cost: £2.50 per child, accompanying adults free.

Book The Rhubarb Shed

*SEND families are welcome at all of Wakefield Museums and Castles sessions. They are also running this session for groups that prefer a more relaxed atmosphere.

Follow in the footsteps of medieval stonemasons and give soapstone carving a go at Pontefract Castle!

Leafy faces and wild man ‘grotesques’ were a popular sight on medieval buildings. But who was the Green Man and what did he represent? Discover some theories of what the Green Man could mean, and see some examples from Pontefract’s past. Be inspired by these local legends to carve your own figure in soapstone!

This is part of Museums and Castles’ Heritage for Youth programme of activities for 12–16-year-olds. Accompanying adults are welcome but not essential.

At Pontefract Castle Activity Zone

Thursday 20 February, 11am and 1.30pm

Ages: 12 to 16

Cost: £2.50 per teenager, accompanying adults free.

Book Soapstone Carving – the grotesque Green Man

Why is Wakefield always rooting for rhubarb?

Join Wakefield Museum at this fun hands-on workshop to find out why rhubarb is so important to Wakefield’s local history! Get crafty painting your own plant pots. Create a special cover that ‘forces’ rhubarb to grow the Yorkshire way.  You’ll also get some rhubarb seeds to sow and grow at home!

This workshop is delivered in partnership with the Community & Family Learning Team at Wakefield Council’s Adult Education Service.

At Wakefield Museum Learning Zone (inside Wakefield Library)

Friday 21 February, 10am and 1pm

Ages: 6+

Cost: £2.50 per child, accompanying adults free.

Book Let’s Sow Rhubarb Seeds!

Join the Pontefract Castle team for a tour of the Castle’s dungeons! Soak in the atmosphere of this eerie underground space. Discover the history of the dungeon. See where Civil War prisoners left to languish scratched their names into the rock.

Please note: The tour involves going underground via steep steps with low light levels, uneven ground, and damp conditions. Sensible footwear is strongly recommended.

Dungeon Tours run every Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 10:45am PLUS Wednesday 19 and Thursday 20 February. 

At Pontefract Castle (meet at the Gift Shop).

Tickets £2.40 children (ages 6+ only), £4.15 adults.

Book Dungeon Tour tickets in advance here

Walk in the footsteps of kings and queens on a Pontefract Castle Explorer Tour!

In years gone by, Pontefract Castle was one of Britain’s most important castles and was known as The Key to the North.

Discover who built and lived in the castle and hear stories from its impressive past.

The tour is accessible for pushchairs and wheelchair users.

Every Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 2pm, PLUS Wednesday 19 and Thursday 20 February. 

At Pontefract Castle

Tickets £2.15 for children (aged 5+), £3.20 for adults. Under 5s go free.

Book Castle Explorer Tours 

Head to Castleford Museum, Pontefract Museum or Wakefield Museum for free family fun crafts every Saturday – not just in the school holidays!

Try a different themed craft every week, with all materials provided.

Perfect to keep in your back pocket for a rainy Saturday!

Every Saturday, 11am to 3pm

At Castleford Museum, Pontefract Museum and Wakefield Museum

Free – no booking required.