October Half Term in Ashford: Two Weeks, Ten Days Out

October half term in Ashford is really two half terms. Kent County Council’s schools are off from Monday 26 to Friday 30 October, but Norton Knatchbull, Highworth, Towers School and Homewood School in Tenterden all close on Friday 16 October and do not return until Monday 2 November. Below are the confirmed dates, and the things actually on locally across both weeks, each taken from the organiser’s own listing.

The quick answer

Kent’s October half term is Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026. Norton Knatchbull, Highworth, Towers and Homewood are off for two weeks, from 19 to 30 October. The biggest family events are the Rare Breeds Centre’s Halloween, 24 October to 1 November, and the Kent and East Sussex Railway’s Spellbound Express (28 to 30 October) and Fright Night Express (30 and 31 October) from Tenterden. The clocks go back on Sunday 25 October.

The dates

The sources for every school, and the Christmas dates, are on our Ashford school term dates page. The clocks go back an hour at 2am on Sunday 25 October, according to GOV.UK, which is the middle weekend of the longer break.

Week one: 17 to 23 October

1. The Commuter Belt: Unplugged and on the Move, Saturday 17 October. Create Music Village’s first town-wide takeover puts six local acts on a loop around four Ashford town-centre venues from 11am to 4.30pm, finishing with Lewis Floyd Henry. Every performance is free and billed as family friendly. It is part of Create’s Big Weekend, 16 to 18 October (Create Music Village).

2. Cardboard Guitars with Debz, Saturday 17 October. A free craft session at Coachworks, Dover Place, at 11am and 1pm, where children aged 5 and up design a cardboard guitar and then “play” it on stage. There are 10 places a session, so book ahead (Create Music Village).

3. Godinton House Autumn Fair, Saturday 17 October. Local food, drink and crafts at Godinton, and the last weekend of its garden season: the gardens close for the year on Sunday 18 October. They open 12.30pm to 5.30pm, last entry 4.30pm (Godinton House).

4. An Intimate Evening with Thea Gilmore, Friday 23 October. One of a string of Create gigs across the fortnight at Revelation, the arts venue inside St Mary the Virgin church, and at Coachworks. The full list is on the Create Music Village site, which says new shows and venues are still being added.

Week two: 24 October to 1 November

5. Soundscape Mark Making Workshop, Saturday 24 October. For older teenagers and adults: a two-hour class at Hypha Studios, Upper Pemberton, Kennington, drawing and painting to live music, 11am to 1pm. It costs £35 for adults and £20 for 16 to 18 year olds (Create Music Village).

6. The Marsh Family Live, Saturday 24 October. The Faversham family band whose lockdown videos went round the world plays RG Studios, 25 Bank Street. Doors 7pm, show 7.30pm to 10pm, tickets £11 plus fees (Create Music Village).

7. Farmyard Frights and Trick or Treat Delights, Rare Breeds Centre, 24 October to 1 November. The Halloween week at the farm on Highlands Farm, Woodchurch, runs for nine days (Rare Breeds Centre). The main event is a 45-minute Trick or Treat Trail round six themed stations, at 10.30am, 11.30am and 12.30pm, which must be booked and costs £3.50 a child on top of entry. Also on: a UV disco in the Cattle Barn at 2.30pm, Paint a Pumpkin from 11am to 3pm at £1 a pumpkin, a spooky straw bale maze from 10am to 5pm, face painting (extra charge), and tractor rides and animal feeds through the day.

Day tickets on the centre’s booking site are £18.50 for adults, £15.75 for children aged 2 to 15 and for seniors, and £57.75 for a family of two adults and two children, with a £1.50 booking fee per order. A carer comes free with a full-price ticket. The butterfly tunnel is closed from October. The centre is open 10am to 5pm every day until 31 October (opening times).

8. The Spellbound Express, Kent and East Sussex Railway, 28 to 30 October. A one-hour return steam trip from Tenterden Town to Northiam with a witch’s potion station, a magician, a baby dragon for photos, activity packs and a Junior Spellcaster certificate, aimed at ages 4 to 11. Fancy dress is encouraged, with prizes. Local Resident Season Tickets are not valid (K&ESR).

9. Fright Night Express, Kent and East Sussex Railway, Friday 30 and Saturday 31 October. Arrive at Tenterden Town station from 5.30pm; free Halloween activities and face painting run from 5pm, and the train leaves at 6.30pm for Northiam, where drummers, a fire eater and a firework display wait. It is back at about 8.15pm. Children get a themed goody bag. Pre-booking is essential, tickets are non-refundable, the fireworks depend on the weather, and carer tickets are not available. Free parking is over the level crossing at the station, TN30 6HE (K&ESR).

10. Soft play at the Rare Breeds Centre runs every day in two-hour sessions, useful on a wet day: £5 for the first child, £3 for each additional child and £1 an adult, for the soft play area only (Rare Breeds Centre).

Bonfire Night comes straight after

Half term runs into the fireworks weekend. Our Ashford fireworks page tracks what the rugby club and the Rare Breeds Centre have and have not announced for 2026; the Fright Night Express above is the only confirmed firework display we have found for the half term itself.

Parking in town

Ashford’s town-centre car parks, and the end of Elwick Place’s free-after-3pm offer on 1 November, are covered on our parking in Ashford page. Check Ashford roadworks and travel before driving to Tenterden or Woodchurch.

Still to be confirmed

• Prices for the Spellbound Express and Fright Night Express sit on the K&ESR booking system rather than the event pages.
• Create Music Village is still adding shows for the last week of October.
• Town-centre Halloween events: Love Ashford’s events page lists nothing for half term yet. We will add anything that appears.