Baby Week 'Friday Fun-Day' - The Big Leeds Celebration

Baby Week is back and this year the opening event is all about creativity, new experiences and having the best start. We're so excited to be hosting the event in the City Centre - so get ready for a winter walk! 

This year’s theme for Baby Week Leeds is ‘Focusing on the Best Start' and will take place 14-20 November 2024. Baby Week is an initiative aimed at bringing sectors and services together to promote the ‘best start’ in life; support parents, carers and families; promote good health and wellbeing and celebrate babies. Open to professionals from maternity, education and early years as well as expectant parents, parents and carers and under 5's!

What to expect?

Feel free to drop in throughout the day and booking is not required, a full schedule and plan of the day will be shared in advance with those who booked on.

Join us for the Baby Week ‘Friday Fun-Day’!

This year the opening event is all about creativity, new experiences and having the best start. Get ready for a wintery walk as we host a selection of events in the City Centre! All details will be shared soon – so please book your free space here.

All events are free and drop ins so feel free to walk in and walk out as your please! Key locations include:

• Leeds Central Library – The new ‘Tiny Totley’ & Yorkshire Contemporary

9am – 12noon: Join us for a morning of fun activities with Yorkshire Contemporary and stay to explore the Tiny Totley Studio; whether your little one likes to feel the speed of a slide ride, a quiet moment with a book in a cosy cushioned nook or a paddle in a ball-pool brimming with breast and bottle-feeding inclusive shapes. Our partners BookTrust will also be joining us to tell you all about our exciting programmes for your little ones in Leeds, as well as providing some lovely books for your whole family to enjoy. Why not join the library, read, borrow books and play in Central Library. Please note, Tiny Totley is open all day from 9am-4.30pm.

• Leeds City Museum – Tiny Tigers Session

10am – 11:45am: Looking for something creative to do with kids in the city? Join us for fun, messy craft sessions for under 5s and their carers. Babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers welcome! Find us near the polar bear in the Life on Earth gallery. Free, drop in. https://museumsandgalleries.leeds.gov.uk/leeds-city-museum/whats-on-leeds-city-museum/

• Leeds Art Gallery – Creative pop up events, The Play Tent experience, information stalls & more

12noon– 4pm: Step into the PLAY tent! A creative, sensory experience for tiny humans and their grown ups! Beautiful textiles, varied textures and gentle musical instruments await the youngest visitors to our cosy baby nook. Bigger ones may choose to construct their own rainbow city, create cosy habitats for the animals or mix up some magical potions with petals and herbs. Play your own way, at your own pace!’ Will also have many stalls and fun activities and a chance to meet the Baby Week team and get involved in some fun!

• John Lewis – ‘Let’s Talk Baby’ event with their brilliant brand representatives

11am – 3pm: We will be hosting our own event during baby week called ‘Let’s Talk Baby’ at the Community Hub Floor 4 and we will be having a few different brand representatives coming along and delivering talks. This is inclusive to anybody who would like to attend and will be knowledge based rather than selling of products. Customers attending will receive a free soft drink upon arrival. Customers can attend the different talks and come and go as they please. There will be opportunity at the end and in between talks for our customers to speak to our Nursery Advice Team. https://experiences.johnlewis.com/events/lets-talk-baby-1041907131277

• Leeds Baby Bank Shoebox Appeal with St Johns Shopping Centre

To celebrate Baby Week, Leeds Baby Bank are holding a shoebox drive! To take part all you have to do is fill a shoebox (or similar) with the following items:

1. An outfit (can be for any age range up to a year e.g. 3-6 months, newborn, 9-12 months, etc.)
2. A packet of wipes
3. A toy (suitable for under ones)
4. A cellular blanket
5. A pair of socks

Once your box is full please drop off at our donation point during Baby Week (14th to 20th November) at the Management suite on the second floor of St Johns centre, or to a member of St Johns staff. More information about Leeds Baby Bank and how you can access their support or support them: https://www.leedsbabybank.org/

Get involved in Baby Week or want to add to this Friday Fun-day schedule? 

Baby Week is all about promoting the best start, the importance of early childhood and bringing sectors together. We're now a national organisation founded in the AMAZING LEEDS and hope to share people, services and resources to support expectant / new parent / carer, professional working in maternity and early years or anyone who has an interest in promoting the best start.

If you want to get involved, please email info@babyweek.co.uk