Brentwood's October half term is 26 to 30 October, or two weeks from 19 October at some secondaries. Free Halloween trails, farm, theatre shows and the bunker.

October half term in Brentwood is Monday 26 to Friday 30 October 2026 for schools on the Essex County Council calendar. Brentwood County High, Shenfield High and Brentwood School are off for two weeks, from Monday 19 October. Everyone is back on Monday 2 November.

The busiest days locally are the last three: free Halloween events in Ingatestone, Brentwood and Shenfield on 29, 30 and 31 October.

The quick answer

  • Essex half term: 26 to 30 October. Some secondaries: 19 to 30 October.
  • Free: Ingatestone Trick or Treat Trail (Thu 29), Brentwood Festival of Frights (Fri 30), Shenfield Spooktacular (Sat 31).
  • The Secret Nuclear Bunker closes to normal visitors from 24 October for its Halloween scare event, so go in the first week if you want the ordinary tour.

The dates school by school are on our Brentwood school term dates page.

Free Halloween events on the high streets

Brentwood Connected, the business improvement district, runs three free afternoons, paid for by local businesses (Brentwood Connected, Halloween).

  1. Trick or Treat Trail, Ingatestone. Thursday 29 October, 10am to 4pm, High Street. Visit the taking-part businesses, do the activities, take a selfie with the walkabout characters and collect treats.
  2. Festival of Frights, Brentwood. Friday 30 October, 2pm to 5pm, High Street and around. Activities, characters, treats, and a fire performance finale in Crown Street.
  3. Shenfield Spooktacular. Saturday 31 October, 2pm to 5pm, the full length of Hutton Road.

Old MacDonald’s Farm, South Weald

  1. Halloween Festival, Saturday 17 October to Sunday 1 November, which covers both half-term weeks. The farm’s own events page lists it with Old Mac’s Pumpkin Nights from Saturday 24 October to Sunday 1 November, and says booking early online saves 25% on Halloween tickets (Old MacDonald’s Farm, special events). Pumpkin Nights is a separate evening ticket, 5pm to 7.30pm, and on those nine days the farm’s daytime hours change to 9.30am to 4.30pm (Old MacDonald’s Farm, opening times). The farm is closed for maintenance 5 to 8 October. Prices show on its booking site once you pick a date. Weald Road, Brentwood CM14 5AY, 01277 375 177. More on every Halloween option in our Halloween in Brentwood page.

Brentwood Theatre, Shenfield Road

All from the theatre’s own listings (Brentwood Theatre, what’s on).

  1. Dinosaur Timewarp, the Pantomime. Sunday 25 October, 1pm and 3.30pm, £14.
  2. The Spooktacular Variety Show. Monday 26 October, 1pm, £10. A UV puppet show for all ages.
  3. Nicky Trix presents Halloween Howls. Thursday 29 October, 1pm, £15. Magic, comedy and audience games; costumes encouraged.
  4. Finding Nemo Kids and Legally Blonde Jnr. Friday 30 October 6pm, Saturday 31 October 1.30pm and 6pm, £22.
  5. Cartoon Circus Live. Sunday 1 November, 1pm, £12. One hour, no interval: clowns, slapstick, illusions and a giant dancing bear.

For older children and adults in the first week, Brentwood Musical Theatre Society’s Come From Away runs Tuesday 20 to Saturday 24 October, £25.

Kelvedon Hatch Secret Nuclear Bunker

  1. The Cold War bunker is open every day until 31 October: 10am to 4pm on weekdays, 10am to 5pm at weekends. But its own page says general entry is closed from 24 October to 4 November while it runs The Bunker Below, its Halloween scare experience. So the normal tour is available 19 to 23 October. Adults £15, children 5 to 16 £13, family of four £38. No booking: pay at the end, and bring some cash because card signal underground can fail (Secret Nuclear Bunker, entry).

Country parks

Both Essex country parks in the borough are open every day from 8am to dusk. Weald has the Stick Man sculpture trail and the deer park; Thorndon has the Gruffalo Trail. Parking is £3.15 for an hour up to £6.55 for the day (Explore Essex, Weald Country Park; Thorndon Country Park). More on both in our Weald and Thorndon in winter page.

Getting about that week

National Rail lists engineering work touching Shenfield or Ingatestone from 25 October. Check our Brentwood roadworks and travel page before a trip into London, and parking in Brentwood for the high street car parks.

Still to be confirmed

Old MacDonald’s Farm Halloween prices, and any late additions to the theatre and Brentwood Connected listings. This page will be rechecked on 12 October.