Kids Eat Free This Half Term: UK Offers Checked
Feeding children in the school holidays is a line in the budget that nobody warns you about. A week of extra lunches adds up fast, and one café stop for three people can easily cost £25 (~$33). That’s why kids-eat-free deals are my favourite bit of British money admin. This October half term, kids eat free at Bella Italia, Frankie & Benny’s and participating Premier Inn restaurants, and every day at Morrisons Cafés during the school holidays, all with a paying adult. Sizzling Pubs do kids’ mains for £1 (~$1.30) on weekdays, and IKEA kids’ meals start at 95p (~$1.25). The table below shows each offer as of October 2026, checked on the chain’s own website on 7 October.
Offers change, and chains add half-term deals late, so check the chain’s own site or app on the day you go. If a chain isn’t in the table, it’s because I couldn’t find its offer on its own website when I checked, not because there’s nothing on.
Kids eat free this half term: checked 7 October 2026
| Where | The deal | When | Kids per adult |
|---|---|---|---|
| Premier Inn restaurants | Kids eat free all day: a free kids’ main at lunch or dinner, and free breakfast | 9 Oct to 1 Nov | Up to 2 |
| Bella Italia | Free starter, main, dessert and drink from the kids’ menu | Scotland 10 to 25 Oct, rest of UK 17 Oct to 1 Nov | 1 per adult main |
| Frankie & Benny’s | Free kids’ main, 2 sides, drink and dessert | Scotland 10 to 25 Oct, rest of UK 17 Oct to 1 Nov | 1 per adult main |
| Morrisons Café | Free kids’ meal and drink, plus a free Kellogg’s breakfast | Every day of the school holidays | 1 per adult main over £5 (~$7) |
| Sizzling Pubs | A kids’ main for £1 (~$1.30) | All day, Monday to Friday | 1 per adult main |
| IKEA restaurants | Kids’ meals from 95p (~$1.25) | Ongoing | Not stated |
The details that matter, from each chain’s own terms:
Premier Inn. Its kids eat free page says “kids will be able to eat for free all day” from 9 October to 1 November. For lunch and dinner, “up to 2 children (aged 15 and under) can have one free main from the kids’ menu” per adult. The adult has to order a main from the daytime or evening menu “and a drink priced at £1.99 or more”. The breakfast offer is “up to 2 children (aged 15 and under)” free with each adult Full Premier Inn Breakfast. Premier Inn’s breakfast page also describes the free kids’ breakfast, with no end date. The lunch and dinner offer applies at the restaurants listed on the kids eat free page, so check yours is on it.
Bella Italia. Kids eat free “all day, every day” through half term, and the terms say “one child can eat for free from the Kids Menu with the purchase of one adult main”. It’s dine-in only, and you have to tell your server when you order.
Frankie & Benny’s. Same group, same terms: one child per adult main, both half-term date ranges, and the kids page says it can’t be combined with “other discounts, vouchers, set menus or promotions”. It’s “not available in airport locations”.
Morrisons Café. Morrisons’ February 2026 announcement says Kids Eat Free continues “in all of its cafés”, giving “a free meal and drink for one child aged 16 or under” when you buy “an adult main meal costing over £5 from The Breakfasts and The Classics menu”. The same announcement promises a free Kellogg’s breakfast (cereal plus an apple or banana) for kids and adults every day of every school holiday this year in England, Scotland and Wales. Morrisons’ café page didn’t load when I checked, so this comes from that release. Ask at the counter.
Sizzling Pubs. The terms say “From Monday to Friday all day, you can enjoy 1 kids’ main meal for £1 with the purchase of every 1 adult main meal”. It isn’t a half-term special, and the page shows no end date. It can’t be used with breakfast or other offers.
IKEA. The food page says “kids meals start at 95p for Pasta with tomato sauce, soft drink & a piece of fruit”. No adult purchase is mentioned, which makes it the one on this list you can use without buying a meal yourself.
Which one works best for one adult and two kids
Most kids-eat-free deals give one free child per paying adult, which quietly assumes two adults. One adult with two children usually gets one free meal, not two. That’s why Premier Inn’s “up to 2 children” per adult is the stand-out deal for single parents this half term. It’s the only offer here where one grown-up’s meal covers two kids.
My other ways around the catch:
- Mix the offers. One child eats free, and the other has a cheap kids’ meal at full price. Even at full price, the second kids’ meal is usually the cheapest thing on the bill.
- Share. A free kids’ meal plus a side often feeds two little ones.
- Go for breakfast. The free Kellogg’s breakfast at Morrisons covers every child, not one per adult, and gets everyone out of the house before the day kicks off.
And honestly, one free meal still takes a good chunk off the bill. I’ll take it.
How kids-eat-free offers usually work
Almost every offer follows the same pattern:
- One free (or £1) kids’ meal per paying adult. The adult usually buys a main, or a main and a drink. Two kids usually means two qualifying adults, which is the catch above.
- School holidays are the main season. Bella Italia and Frankie & Benny’s run theirs for half term only. Sizzling Pubs’ and IKEA’s offers show no end date, and neither does Premier Inn’s free kids’ breakfast.
- Dates differ by nation. Two chains run earlier dates in Scotland. Check your own school’s half term too, because councils set them.
- A set kids’ menu with an age cap. Premier Inn’s cap is 15 and under, Morrisons’ is 16 and under. Always check.
- Dine-in only, and tell them first. Bella Italia’s offer is dine-in only, and it asks you to mention the offer when you order, not when you pay. Assume the same elsewhere.
Stacking: where it gets properly boujee-on-a-budget
The free kids’ meal is the starting point. Stack it:
- Sign-up freebies. Some chain apps give you a welcome voucher. Sign up the week before you go.
- Loyalty points on the adult meal. You’re paying for your food anyway, so collect the points.
- Read the small print first. Frankie & Benny’s says its offer can’t be combined with other discounts, and Sizzling Pubs says the same. The terms take ninety seconds to read.
- Pair it with a free day out. A kids-eat-free lunch plus a free museum or park day makes a full day out that looks expensive and isn’t. My October half term in London guide has the free half of that plan.
When you’re not eating out at all
Some half terms the budget says no, and that’s fine. The same holiday thinking lives in our £35 (~$46)-a-week meal plan. A packed picnic in the museum café seating costs nothing, and nobody minds.
FAQ
Where do kids eat free this October half term?
As of 7 October 2026, Premier Inn restaurants (9 October to 1 November), Bella Italia and Frankie & Benny’s (10 to 25 October in Scotland, 17 October to 1 November elsewhere) and Morrisons Cafés all run kids-eat-free offers with a paying adult. Sizzling Pubs do £1 kids’ mains on weekdays all year.
Do I have to buy something for kids to eat free?
Almost always. A qualifying adult main is the usual condition, sometimes with a drink, and it’s usually one child per adult. Premier Inn allows up to two children per adult. IKEA’s 95p kids’ meals don’t mention an adult purchase.
When do kids eat free offers run in the UK?
Mostly in school holidays: summer, half terms, Easter and Christmas. A few show no end date, like Sizzling Pubs’ weekday £1 kids’ mains and Premier Inn’s free kids’ breakfast. Always check the dates on the chain’s own site.
Are kids eat free deals actually worth it?
Yes, when the adult meal is something you’d happily pay for anyway. They’re not worth it if the deal drags you somewhere pricier than you’d normally go. The deal should save you money on your plan, not make the plan.
