Staines schools are off for two weeks, 19 to 30 October 2026. Ten things actually on locally, from Fright Nights to a Frankenstein train, with dates and prices.
October half term in Staines-upon-Thames and the rest of Spelthorne runs for two weeks this year, Monday 19 to Friday 30 October 2026, because Surrey County Council has stretched its autumn break for one year only. That is ten weekdays to fill. Below is what is actually on locally in that fortnight, taken from each organiser’s own listing, with the dates and prices they publish.
The quick answer
- Dates: Monday 19 to Friday 30 October 2026, back on Monday 2 November. St Paul’s Catholic College in Sunbury is the exception: its pupils are off from Friday 23 October.
- Free or nearly free: a children’s theatre show at Staines Library on Thursday 22 October (donation, from £1), and weekly rhymetimes in Ashford, Sunbury and Shepperton libraries.
- Kempton Steam Museum is closed from 20 October to 20 November, so do not plan a visit in half term.
Check your school’s dates first
Most Spelthorne schools follow the county’s two-week break, but not all. Our school term dates page has each secondary’s own calendar. The short version: Matthew Arnold, Thomas Knyvett, Sunbury Manor, Bishop Wand, Thamesmead, Halliford and St James Senior Boys all take 19 to 30 October; St Paul’s Catholic College takes Friday 23 to Friday 30 October.
What’s on, 17 October to 1 November
| When | What | Where | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Every day to Sun 1 Nov | Thorpe Park Fright Nights | Chertsey | From £39 online |
| Every day to Sat 31 Oct | Shepperton to Weybridge ferry, every 15 minutes | Shepperton | £1.75 child single, £15 family return |
| Wed 21, Mon 26, Wed 28 Oct | Floodlit racing at Kempton Park | Sunbury | From £16 |
| Thu 22 Oct, 2pm | The Tailor of Gloucester, family theatre | Staines Library, Elmsleigh Centre | Donation, from £1 |
| Tue 27 Oct, 6.30am to 2pm | Sunbury Antiques Market | Kempton Park, Sunbury | Free from 8am |
| Sat 31 Oct and Sun 1 Nov | Scream Up: Frankenstein! train rides | Hampton Kempton Waterworks Railway, Hanworth | £4.50 child, £7.50 adult |
| Weekly | Library rhymetimes and Stanwell craft club | Ashford, Sunbury, Shepperton, Stanwell | Free |
The Tailor of Gloucester at Staines Library
Farnham Maltings brings a new stage version of Beatrix Potter’s story to the Staines Library Hub in the Elmsleigh Centre on Thursday 22 October at 2pm. It runs about 90 minutes with a short interval and is for ages 3 and up. Tickets are donation-based: the library suggests at least £3 a person, and the Eventbrite booking page takes £1 upwards. It is part of the Escalate Arts programme, and details are on Surrey Libraries’ Staines events page.
Scream Up: Frankenstein! on the waterworks railway
The Hampton Kempton Waterworks Railway runs a Halloween train on Saturday 31 October and Sunday 1 November, the last weekend of the break: passengers ride out to “Frankenstein’s Castle” to see what Victor has been making in his laboratory. Advance booking only, £4.50 for children and £7.50 for adults, on the railway’s 2026 events page. Every child must be with an adult over 18, one adult to no more than four children, and parking is free. The gate postcode for sat navs is TW13 7ND.
Thorpe Park Fright Nights
Thorpe Park’s Halloween event runs every day from 15 October to 1 November, so it covers the whole half term. Tickets start at £39 per person online, or £71 with the scare mazes. The park recommends the scare attractions for ages 13 and up, and some, such as The Conjuring 4D, for 15 and up, so this is one for teenagers rather than small children (Thorpe Park, Fright Nights).
Floodlit racing at Kempton Park
Kempton has three evening meetings in half term: Wednesday 21, Monday 26 and Wednesday 28 October, all floodlit, with tickets from £16 on the racecourse’s events page. The course’s CopyBet Jump Sunday on 18 October, the day before half term starts, is from £10.
Sunbury Antiques Market
The market at Kempton Park runs on Tuesday 27 October, 6.30am to 2pm. Entry is £5 a person before 8am and free after that, children under 16 are free, and parking is free (Sunbury Antiques). Its outside stalls welcome dogs on leads.
The Shepperton ferry, last week of daily sailings
The pedestrian ferry between Shepperton and Weybridge runs every 15 minutes from 9am to 5.30pm daily until the end of October, weather and river permitting. From November it drops to weekends only. A child single is £1.75, an adult single £3.50, a family return £15 for up to two adults, and under-5s go free (The Ferry Point).
Free every week at the libraries
Surrey Libraries’ own pages list these regular free sessions, which carry on through half term unless the library says otherwise:
- Ashford Library: Pebble rhymetime, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 10.30am to 11am (Ashford Library).
- Sunbury Library: Pebble rhymetime, Fridays 10.30am and Saturdays 11am (Sunbury Library).
- Shepperton Library: Pebble rhymetime, Tuesdays at 11am (Shepperton Library).
- Stanwell Library: drop-in craft, Thursdays 3.30pm to 4.30pm (Stanwell Library).
Closed in half term
Kempton Steam Museum in Hanworth has its last steaming weekend of the autumn on 17 and 18 October, the weekend before half term, then closes from 20 October to 20 November 2026, static Sundays included (Kempton Steam Museum). If the engine is on your list, go on the 17th or 18th.
Straight after half term
- Saturday 7 November: Kempton Park fireworks.
- Sunday 8 November: Remembrance Sunday services across the borough.
- Sunday 22 November: the Staines Christmas parade.
Still to be confirmed
- Halloween events in Staines town centre. Staines Market and the council ran a free Halloween day in the 2024 half term, with a kids’ disco and pumpkin carving; nothing is listed for 2026 yet.
- Library half-term specials. Surrey Libraries lists no other special events in Spelthorne for the break so far.
Getting about in half term: see our roadworks and travel and parking pages.
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