Uniform on, free treats: After-school offers running across Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi

Dubai: The school bags are already scuffed and the first homework has landed, which means the after-school hours are back in play. A handful of cafés and dessert spots across Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi have been running student giveaways since term started, and most of them run out tomorrow.

Here is what is still live, what you need to bring, and how long you have left.

SALT, free softie plus 15% off for the whole year

This is the one with the most time on the clock.

SALT is giving a free softie to school and university students as part of its Back to School Week. School pupils need to turn up in uniform, and the offer extends to guardians, nannies and teachers accompanying them. University students can use a valid student ID instead.

The better news is what happens once the week ends. SALT is running a 15% student discount all year long at any branch, so the softie is really an introduction to something more durable.

When: 31 August to 7 September, with the 15% discount running year-round Where: Any SALT branch across the UAE Price: Free with school uniform or university student ID

Home Bakery, a free scoop of The Bomb

Home Bakery is handing students a free Bomb ice cream in the late afternoon.

One catch matters more than the rest. Only the Galleria Mall Al Wasl branch is taking part. No other Home Bakery location is running it, so this is not a turn-up-anywhere offer.

When: Until Friday 4 September, 3pm to 6pm daily Where: Home Bakery, Galleria Mall, Al Wasl, Dubai Price: Free for students

Absolute Zero, free Flame Cooler for anyone in uniform

Absolute Zero is doing a free Flame Cooler for every student in uniform, it is running the offer across all branches.

It applies to pickup orders, so this is not something you can add to a delivery basket.

When: 31 August to 4 September Where: All Absolute Zero branches Price: Free with school uniform, pickup orders only

Tim Hortons, a free chocolate with any drink

The Tim Hortons offer works slightly differently, because it is aimed at the adult doing the driving as much as the child in the back seat.

Buy any medium or large drink and you get a free hot or iced chocolate for your little ones.

When: For now it is running for a month Where: Tim Hortons UAE branches Price: Free small hot or iced chocolate with any medium or large drink

LINK by Mara, a smoothie and 20% off the menu

If you are outside Dubai, this is the one to know about. LINK by Mara is giving students a free Little Smoothie along with 20% off the entire menu.

It runs at two locations, one in Sharjah and one in Abu Dhabi, in the early afternoon window.

When: Until Friday 4 September, 12pm to 5pm Where: LINK by Mara, Al Qarayen in Sharjah and Khalifa City in Abu Dhabi Price: Free Little Smoothie, plus 20% off the full menu

Worth knowing before you go

Almost all of these require some proof that you are actually a student. For school pupils that means the uniform, which is why the offers are clustered in the mid-afternoon. For university students it usually means a valid student ID, so keep it in your wallet rather than at home.

Terms vary between brands and branches, and a few of these are single-location offers, so a quick call ahead saves a wasted trip.