Children’s Parties on a Budget

Party season is approaching.  Halloween is next month and Christmas is not too far away.  Everyone loves a party but planning and preparing for one can be stressful, and expensive.  According to research, parents spend more than £19,000 over a lifetime on children’s birthday parties and parents often feel under pressure to spend more than they can afford.  Parties don’t have to be expensive and by getting children involved in the planning and preparation you can save time and money whilst having fun!

Themes

Whether its princesses or pirates, having a themed party can be budget friendly and great fun!  There is no need to purchase expensive outfits or props.  You can put a great outfit together by going to the local charity shop and you can save money spent on hiring entertainers by creating your own themed games and activities.

Location

The most cost effective location is to have a party at home or, if it is nice weather, in the garden or at the local park.   If you are not keen on 30 children running through your house with ice cream and jelly, why not hire the local village hall?  This can often be a very cost effective option and you can easily transform the venue, based on your party’s theme, with decorations and accessories.

Invitations

Another easy way to keep the costs of a party down is to keep the guest list small.  You don’t need to invite the whole class; let your child choose a list of friends that they want to invite.  If your child has a friend with a birthday at around the same time it is a good idea to have a joint party and share the costs.  Once you have put together a list of guests, why not create your own invitations?  This can be a great creative activity to get children involved with.  Pinterest is a good source for inspiration.

Decorations

Whether your party is at home or if you have hired out a location, decorations can make a huge difference without breaking the bank.  Balloons are relatively cheap and with a bit of creativity you can create an eye catching display.

If you have a bit of extra money to spend, the Birthday Piñatas from Balloons Galore are a really fun addition.  You can fill them with your own treats and let the children take it in turns to pull the strings to release the goodies!

Party Food

Keep it simple.  You can easily save money by making your own sandwiches, but make sure to only make what you need to avoid waste.  After all, what everyone is really waiting for is the cake!  This can be done cheaply too.  It is easy to make a simple sponge cake or you can buy a sponge base and decorate it yourself with coloured icing and decorations.

Entertainment

Avoid hiring expensive entertainers and keep the costs down by providing entertainment yourself.  Children still love traditional party games such as pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey and musical chairs.  If the weather is nice you can have a sack race or three-legged race outside. The old ones are the best!

Party Bags

Fretting over what to put in the party bags can be stressful and the costs can easily build up.  Again, keep it simple.  You don’t need to fill the bags with elaborate toys and expensive treats.  A set of stickers, some crayons, and a piece of cake will suffice.  You can also add a helium balloon and a lollipop or put together a lucky dip bag of toys from the local pound shop.

A nice alternative to providing party bags is the get the children to make something as an activity during the party that they can then take home with them.

So, arranging children’s birthday parties doesn’t have to be stressful or be a huge drain on your wallet.  Follow the tips above and you can arrange great parties for your children and have fun in the process!