Mosh Tots Band

Mosh Tots is the hippest, hottest party in town! The weekly live ‘Gigs For Kids’ at Future Yard, Birkenhead, introduces little rockers (aged 1-8) to the rockin’ world of live music in a safe and fun environment.

Live music should be for everyone, and Mosh Tots is an opportunity for families to come together and share the joy of live music together. We’re all about rocking out and having fun – but we’ll be learning too, about different genres, about musical participation, with a chance for your little one to join in with the music making, and kick start a love of live music that will last a lifetime. F,DI.

Story Craft Theatre Presents The Big Pirate Party

It’s time to Party, and Pirate No-beard is getting things ready for the celebrations......but there’s a problem ...the Pirate party prize treasure has been stolen!!

Your help is needed in following the treasure map, setting sail across the seven seas and finding Pirate Pinch and get back the treasure. There will be plenty of silliness along the way; with volleyball playing hermit crabs, low flying seagulls and one Pirate that is all Panto (Oh, yes she is!!)

Story Craft Theatre is an award winning children's theatre company based in York and run by professional theatre-makers Cassie Vallance and Janet Cosgriff. F,DI.

Baby Rock Sampler Rave

BABY ROCK SAMPLER run high quality, family friendly gigs outside the summer festival season.

Their sold out shows in Manchester have featured acts like Stealing Sheep, The Orielles, Afriquoi, HENGE and Honeyfeet - proper gigs for grownups that the kids enjoy too!

Join the BABY ROCK SAMPLER DJs for an hour of party electronics from across time and space, playing old favourites and songs you never knew you needed to know.F,DI.

The Play Tent

"Step into the magical land of the PLAY tent! You and your tiny humans are invited to get into your PLAY flow within our stunning rainbow playscape. You can expect beautiful textiles, sounds, and smells: a sensory treat for even the youngest of Deer Shedders. Your little ones can mix potions for fairies, be architects of their own rainbow city or get down with the dinos at their delightful disco! Curated by two experienced early years educators, every inch of the tent is carefully designed to offer your littles everything they need to indulge in imaginative, creative, sensory PLAY! F, DI.

Feral Farm

It's really important that even our youngest guests have the freedom to choose what they do over the weekend, so of course Feral Farm is back for Deer Shed 2024.

The first rule of Feral Farm is 'there are no rules on Feral Farm', so leave your parents at the door and go wild!

Play in the straw, build stuff, run around, sing, shout and do pretty much whatever you want without those pesky parents (though they can come in if they really, really want to...) F,DI.

Born Of The Forest Zen Mud Kitchen

Børn of the Forest is a classroom without walls, where the team invite the great outdoors in for our littlest explorers to discover the natural world without the fuss.

The Nature Kitchens are here to let little ones explore all the natural materials on offer in Baldersby Park with all the sensory sorting, pouring, scooping and mixing they can manage!

Whether they're cooking up a mud pie or some stone soup, there's enough to keep your little one entertained for hours. Bon Appetit! F,DI.

Soft Play with Soft4Tots

You know what you're going to get with a soft play area; fun slides, cubes, and other shapes for the little ones to spend hours of fun playing on. Sometimes we wondered if we should give up with the bands and comedy and simply host a soft play area at festival.

Soft4Tots based just outside Leeds have been providing soft play packages across Yorkshire since 2012. We can't wait to welcome them to the festival this year providing us with a whole host of play options. F,DI.

A Sensory Adventure

Join us for an exciting journey through Retro Futures and Brand New Memories! With our multi sensory puppet show, explore new sensations with your child, guided by a trusty puppet adventurer!

An interactive theatre puppetry session dedicated to 5 years and under; join them in the Mini Shedders tent and let your imagination run wild. F, DI.

Zumbini

Developed by Zumba and BabyFirst, Zumbini is a music and movement programme for children aged 0-4 which promotes the development of cognitive, physical, social and emotional skills through the exploration of music.

Mini Binis is designed to get you and your little one moving and grooving to the unique, diverse Zumbini soundtrack as we use musical exploration to promote the development of key motor and cognitive skills but……most importantly we have A LOT of fun!! F,DI.

Little Seedlings

Join Little Seedlings for their first outing at Deer Shed as part of the Under 5's programme. The Chappell Allerton based group will be taking over the Mini Shedders Tent on Sunday at Deer Shed to bring you an interactive drop in session, where you can access their sensory, messy and crafty offering. The most fun can be found out of the simplest of items, just take our card board box city for example. Imagine what you could do with some old toilet rolls... F,DI.

The Story Circle

Can you hear me? Can you stomp your feet? One two three, on the beat! Can you help us create a story, and use your voice? I bet you can, start the noise!

Join this interactive story time session to give a chance for your little ones to wind down and relax after a busy day at the festival.F,DI.

The Alternative Cardboard Oscar

Who wants to do a DiCaprio and spend 23 years waiting to finally be handed an Oscar? Not us. We also don't want to have to put in all that "hard work" and do all that "acting" that's required. (We're also not talented). Luckily with this crafty workshop you can take your cardboard Oscar stick, then cut and paste as decoratively as you want.

Definitely worth hanging up in your home toilet as a decorative piece of art we reckon, well if it's good enough for Emma Thomson...F,DI.

Time to Doodle

Calling all budding artists and doodlers; if you want to spend hours (or seconds) drawing, colouring and doodling then this is the session for you.

A quiet corner of our Mini Shedders tent aimed at under 5's this is a chance to get away from the hustle and bustle of the festival and just let your creativity flow.F,DI.

Adventure Babies

Take your little one on an adventure with multi-award winning, sensory storytelling classes by Adventure Babies.

Bringing books to life through interactive stories, sensory props and messy play, the team will support your tot's language and communication development by stimulating all their senses.

With classes designed for newborns up to 4 year olds, there's something here for any little one; no matter what page they're on.F,DI.

Playdough

Playdough is now officially a festival favourite. Come along and create creatures and patterns in this multi-coloured dough.

If you want to keep it, create anything you like or stick to the theme and create your own space themed futuristic landscape - the choices are endless.F,DI.

Baby Sensory Central Presents Sensory Festival Party

It’s easy to forget that, when you’re a tiny person, pretty much every experience is an overwhelming one and we’re willing to bet they’ve not got all that many music festivals under their belts just yet…

Worry not, Baby Sensory Central return this summer to bring your buzzing babes back down to earth with their Baby's First Festival session.

By focusing on feelings, sights and sounds in a comfortable controlled environment, BSC aim to ensure that *everyone* in the tent gets a good night’s sleep! F,DI.

Dream Time Baby Massage

It’s tough being a baby. Spending all day eating, crying, burping, laughing and sleeping isn’t easy you know?

Lucky for us, Dream Time Baby Massage are here to help maximise your baby’s holistic happiness.

Singing will soothe and nurture language development, dancing will bring balance and a spot of gentle yoga will encourage flexibility, relaxation and bonding.

Ah, baby bliss! F,DI.

House of Fun Family Disco

Jonny Strangeways (Mad World/Strangeways/Bad Sneakers etc) brings his Family Disco to Deer Shed (on at Left Bank Leeds), playing hits from 1960s-now, including pop, dance, indie, reggae, hip hop, synth pop and more!

So remember kids there is no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no , no, no, no limit to how much fun you will have, cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate but sometimes you gotta fight for your right to party! Get ready to have some serious fun!.F,DI.

Art at the Start

Visiting Deer Shed from Dundee University, Art at the Start explore the benefits of art-making for babies, toddlers and their grown-ups.

With sensory 'Small World' trays, gentle art and, of course, messy play, these specially designed drop-in sessions are the perfect environment to get Mini-Shedders all get settled into festival life.

Where else can your under-5's contribute to global academia?! F,DI.

Thula Mama Time

Thula Mama is a baby singing group with a difference.

Join Jenny Cook as she leads the group in uplifting and magical acapella harmony singing featuring carefully selected songs from a wide variety of languages, traditions and cultures around the world.

The universal themes of families, babies and motherhood will shine through in this heartwarming singalong of lullabies and upbeat mostly with a theme relating to families or babies, mixing gentle lullabies with catchy, upbeat songs. F,DI.

The Great British Dig Off

Having laid dormant for a year, we think it's time to dive back into our sand pits...

What we used to call '8 tonnes of sand, nuff said' has become so much more. In fact, we're declaring it the inaugural Deer Shed Great British Dig Off!

Featuring a series of specially themed pits, we've got all the spades, buckets and excavation gizmos you could ever need; who knows what you'll dig up? F,DI.