The Party Checklist
When planning a party, it’s important to create a checklist tool so you can keep track of your progress and avoid any last minute panics. Everyone knows how stressful it can be organising something to cater for multiple amounts of children, but it doesn’t have to be. Using this checklist, we’ll help you plan in advance and as a result, you should have the freedom to enjoy participating at your child’s party, stress-free!
From booking a venue to organising the birthday cake, our checklist tool below provides some great advice. And better still, it’s all been written exclusively for you by Martin, the owner and business operations director of Zunzo Inflatables, who has over a decade of party planning and service to the industry experience and advice to be shared.
Remember, the smaller details count towards creating a unique party experience. Anyone can throw a children’s birthday party, but we want yours will be remembered for years to come. And what’s more, guests that leave positive feedback with you after the party make it all the worth while.
Step 1: Budget
Children’s parties of any age can exceed your planned budget very quickly dependant on what it is you’re hiring. Even the smallest of things can add to your overall costs, so it’s important to set a budget and plan accordingly, reviewing the wants and needs of your party features frequently. According to Voucher Cloud, the average British child’s birthday party costs over £320 with a further £175.80 then spent on birthday presents (source: https://www.vouchercloud.com/resources/cost-of-childrens-parties), so it’s recommended to start planning early and only spend what you can actually afford to put aside for the big event.
Step 2: Venue
Before even looking into a venue, you may need to do a little research first. You’re going to need to know roughly how many children you need to accommodate for so you can choose a venue that’s big enough and what type of party your thinking of having such as a bouncy castle party or disco, if any of the children attending require special assistance such as ground floor level access ramps or lifts and most importantly, how far parents of children invited are willing to travel? Consider two or three dates as potential options that works for everybody and a time-frame that manageable for guests to attend as you may find the venue you have in mind may already be booked. Always have an end time - parties that run too long can be both difficult for parents and off-putting. Consider dates of other parties that may be happening at the same time as yours - you don’t want to clash! Ask around other parents to get a feel of when other parties are happening and book your date accordingly.
Use our Venue’s page to search nearby venues around your local area - We’ve already done the hard work for you! This feature shows you photos of the venue (both inside and out), gives a brief description of why that particular venue is a great choice for your event, what type of equipment is allowed within that venue, facilities available whilst in use, such as kitchen and parking and contact details for person(s) you’ll need to enquire about hiring. Oh, we’ve also included a handy interactive map too so you can see the exact distance from your local school to this venue.
Most venues may charge you a small cover charge to use their hall or facilities (sometime by the hour), but let’s not forget the pros of hiring an indoor venue here. In most circumstances, you’ll be benefiting from free heating, electricity, kitchen facilities and clean toilets as-well as a roof over your head. No need to worry about wet-weather or soaking equipment. Alternatively, you could cut venue costs by hosting the party in your home garden, if you’ve a big enough space. But again, consider children using your toilets, trailing grass and mud in and out of your home and the potential of rain (even in summer months). There are many positives to hosting your party at home, such as you’ve got as much time as required to set everything up with no hassle of trailing to and from your car with party food or decorations. You can run an extended party duration at home or allow your children extra time to enjoy using your hired inflatables in the comfort of their own garden space. It’s important to consider both options and do what you feel is best for you and your party requirements.
Step 3: Invitations
Once you’ve confirmed a date and time for the party, alongside a suitable venue, spread the word via invitations as soon as you can. Ideally, you should look to give a minimum of 2-weeks notice to allow parents to plan to attend your party. Remember, the more detailed the invite, the better informed your guests will be. Try to include: When the party is happening (date & time); Where the party is being hosted at (give full venue address, including postcode); What to wear - If there’s a theme, such as fancy dress, make it known; How to contact you (should there be any issues attending or locating you on the day); Is RSVP required (consider via text response). Many websites provide simple and easy to use invitation designs that can be bought online and arrive to you by post, or printable invitations (we have some amazing invitations which can be downloaded and printed at home for free here). Alternatively, you could do an online invite and send it out via social media etc (not recommended). Don’t forget to check for food allergies - this will help when planning party food later on. Give details on your invites to contact you if a child has food allergies you need to know about.
Step 4: Party Food
Most parties you attend will have a short interval for party food, roughly half-way through the party. Organising the food doesn’t have to be a hassle. In-fact, you’ve a few choices - if you’re looking to keep your budget down and provide the basics, home-preparation is traditionally the best way to go. A cold selection of sandwiches, crisps, sausage rolls, yogurt and a chocolate biscuit, tucked away in a lunch box (cardboard obviously (can be found cheaply online)) alongside a juice carton can work well for high-energy parties. Especially if the children are having fun and only want to spend minimal time away from the party. On the other-hand, if you’re thinking of saving time and would rather someone else prepares and provides the food, you could consider hiring a caterer to step-in. Hiring a caterer is pretty easy, and you’ll have the opportunity to organise more choice, knowing it’s all being prepared in a hygiene-rated kitchen and by a trained and qualified chef. Prepare to spend a little more on this option though, you’re asking someone to do all the hard work for you! Alternatively, some venues have their own kitchen and chefs which will prepare a selection of hot and cold food for you and deliver directly to their table ready to eat. Plus, they’ll take care of all the mess and washing up. Easy-peasy!
When planning party food, you should consider how much food you actually need. Think realistically how many children will need to be catered for, weather you’re catering for adults/parents also and how you can save on waste. It’s far better to run out of party food on-the-day than have lots left over.
Don’t forget the tea and coffee! Parents that are staying for long durations can sometimes get bored. Keep them entertained by providing regular top-ups of refreshments and try to include them in the party. The more involved they are, the more inviting it will be to stay til the end.
Step 5: The Birthday Cake
The Birthday Cake can be the highlight of the party! The centre-piece everyone will gather round and sing ‘happy birthday’ too. It tends to receive the most photos (after the birthday person, obviously) and get the most comments. You don’t have to spend a fortune getting a birthday cake made for you - plenty of local high-street supermarkets have a fantastic range of amazing cakes available to buy direct. But if your thinking of going unique, it’s advised to give your cake-maker as much notice as possible to get this booked in. Preferably, right after you’ve confirmed the availability of the venue and booked!
Step 6: Hiring The Entertainment
Keeping children occupied, even for a few hours, can be a task in hand. Whilst your attention needs to be on managing the operations of the party, welcoming guests and speaking with parents, entertainment such as a Bouncy Castle or Inflatable is a great idea and can definitely relieve some of the stress associated with hosting a party. Children like to be focused on being entertained, sharing experiences with their friends and having fun! Whatever entertainment you decide to go for needs to be adequate for the amount of children attending. For example, an inflatable hire that recommends a maximum of only 5 children at any one given time would not be suitable as the only entertainment at a party covering 30 children. You would, in this case, need to consider something additional, such as Soft Play Hire or Mobile Disco Hire. You can usually find Inflatable Bouncy Castle operators offer package deals, which combine multiple forms of small entertainment, but have a huge impact on the party. You can use our Venue’s page to find the venue your hiring, then scroll through numerous inflatables that have been allocated to that venue based purely on their size (including height limitations). Or, use our availability checker to enter your desired date and see what’s available.
Step 7: Remember the little things
Preperation is the biggest and most important tool in organising a party, but it’s the little things that count the most towards actually enjoying the party yourself, without worry. Here’s some crucial reminders you should definitely make a note of (believe us, we have experience!)…
- Have a Plan B. We cannot stress how important this is! Sometimes, things do go wrong. Suppliers are either late or don’t turn up, the hall or venue could have double-booked. The list goes on… Remember to plan for the worst, just as a back-up. Especially if your venue is either your garden or outdoors - in this case, keep on-hand a list of nearby venues that may be able to assist you last minute.
- Invite Reminders - For those who have called or text a response to their invite, text them a short ‘look forward to seeing you’ message a day or two before to confirm their still attending. If the party is fancy dress, reiterate this too.
- A fully charged phone - whether you use your phone for taking pictures or communication, it’s vital it’s switched on and not on silent through-out the party. Make sure you’re available hours before the party starts for last minute communications, parents who can’t seem to locate you or guests who can no longer make it. Check storage and battery life frequently and if in doubt, charge it before you leave (and bring the charger with you).
- Did anyone have any food allergies? Remind yourself of this and communicate with your party food supplier to check how you will know which dedicated food parcel is theirs? Plan ahead of time.
- Candles for the cake, table-clothes and bin bags! Party bag fillers, a knife to cut the cake , decorations for the venue! The small things really do matter. Consider making a check-list of items you’ll need handy on the day.
- Check-in on the birthday child - You mind will be cluttered with tasks and confusion, but it’s important to sit down and ask suggestions of the birthday child and invite their input. They could help deciding the party games, what type of food should be served or how big their picture should be on the cake?
We hope this Party Checklist tool has been of lots of use to you. Don’t forget, we’re on the end of the phone with some fantastic advice and plenty of experience. Don’t hesitate to get in-touch with us for a general chat about hosting your own party!