Hard-working members of the armed forces and emergency services are set to enjoy some free Halloween fun with their families this October, courtesy of Southport Pleasureland.

The amusement park is giving away £50,000 worth of free ride tokens to nurses, doctors, NHS workers, police, fire officers, and members of the armed forces to say thank you for their incredible efforts following the Manchester attack, and on a more personal note – the care given to the owner of Southport Pleasureland, Norman Wallis, after his recent spell in hospital.

On the 14th and 15th October, the theme park’s Happy Halloween spectacular will launch to the general public with an exclusive offer of £50 of free rides for emergency service and armed forces personnel.

Southport Pleasureland will be giving free ride tokens on a first-come, first-served basis to members of the armed forces and emergency services, including NHS staff and student nurses, who register to attend the event via the amusement park’s website.

This is the 4th year that Pleasureland has been transformed into "The Happy Halloween Capital of the UK". Throughout the half-term holidays, the park will be decorated with hundreds of pumpkins, bats and spiders to ramp up the spooky fun.

Visitors can expect to encounter creepy characters welcoming them to Pleasureland’s rides and shows, with live outdoor spooky theatre from “The Twitchy Witch" and some Halloween wizardry from roaming magicians.

The event organisers will be giving spot prizes to visitors who get into the ‘spirit' of things by coming along in fancy dress themselves.

Managing Director of Southport Pleasureland, Norman Wallis, said, “After my stay in hospital I’m extremely grateful to be here – and well enough to put on this Halloween event. It's is all down to the amazing care I received from doctors and nurses. We want to launch our Halloween celebrations this year with a gesture of thanks to all the heroes in our armed forces and emergency services, who work incredible hard to help to keep us safe and well in these troubled times.”

Those interested in attending the armed forces and emergency services Happy Halloween weekend must sign up online at http://www.southportpleasureland.com/book-online. Tickets will be allocated at one per person to the first 1000 registrations, so organisers are urging people to register quickly to avoid missing out on the Halloween Spectacular.

Happy Halloween at Southport Pleasureland opens to the general public on Saturday 14th October and runs until Sunday the 29th October. The park opens at 11am for the event, with savings available online for a "ride as much as you like card" until 30 sept.