Posts Tagged ‘Birthday party’

Five things to think about when booking a children’s party venue

laurajane021 April 4th, 2017 No Comments

Five things to think about when booking a party venue.

Booking a party venue is one of the first things to do when you are hosting a children’s party. It may seem like a simple task however finding a venue that is available plus suits all of your needs can prove problematic as venues can book up very quickly! Due to this sometimes there is no room to be fussy however if you can be here are my five top things to think about when booking a party venue:

1: Have FIVE venues in mind!

This may seem like a lot but I would suggest keeping a bank of contact details for venues that you have vetted throughout the year. Maybe look at one leisure centre, two community centres and two church halls and have all of their details saved and ready to go when party season hits!

2: Parking Facilities and access facilities

This is VERY important! Try to avoid venues that have limited parking or parking that may result in people getting tickets or having to park dangerously! Also from an entertainers perspective – we really need a parking space especially if we are in a ball gown! Also if there are a lot of stairs this may prove problematic for guests with pushchairs, wheelchairs or glass slippers so lift access (and working lift access) is really important.

3: Kitchen and Toilet Facilities

Both need to be easy access, clean and have enough space to get all of the food prepped and cook if you need to. Also check for baby changing facilities as, especially with younger parties, they are often needed.

4: Plug Sockets.

This may seem like a very strange thing to add to the list however having no plug sockets or a lack of them can prove problematic, especially from our perspective. We always bring along an extension chord however this can be a danger in itself if we are having to stretch it over a distance with children running around. Poorly placed plug sockets (one venue springs to mind immediately) can be a nightmare for both yourselves and us so when you are setting tables up or seated areas for parents just have a check of where the plug sockets in the room are.

5: Size of Venue.

Cater your venue to your party size (that is children and adults). If you have a small number of children coming (10 or so) you will still have an adult per child a lot of the time which means that you need to account for that with the space. Likewise if you have a 30+ party you are going to want a lot more space as you could be catering for up to 60 space wise. Just something to bare in mind.

I have popped below my top ten venues for Flintshire and Wrexham which I hope you find useful!

In no particular order:

Flintshire

  • Hawkesbury Community Centre Buckley:
  • Hawarden Village Institute:
  • Mancot Village Hall
  • St Mathews Church, Buckley
  • Northop Hall Pavillion

Wrexham:

  • Hightown Community Resource Centre
  • Garden Village Institute, Kenyon Avenue
  • St Margrets Church Hall, Acton
  • Gwersyllt Resource Centre
  • Brynteg Memorial Centre, Quarry Road

You know you were a 90s party child if…

laurajane021 February 22nd, 2017 2 Comments

You know your a 90’s Party Child when…

I was a 90’s party child and if I could have chosen any princess to go to my party when I was five it would have been Cinderella, mainly due to the fact that this was the only Disney VHS we had – aside from the jungle book. However, growing up in the 90’s (which I always think was just ten years ago – nope), princess visits, much to my dismay, did not exist – instead we had a variety of other party ideas…here are a few of my favourites below

My 90’s party memories:

(more…)

Children’s Party Food – I love food!

laurajane021 January 24th, 2017 No Comments
Food

The Children’s party food challenge

It’s party food time! I have been rather looking forward to writing about party food!

I love food – love it. In particular I love party food – I really do believe it should be an official diet (maybe only on a Friday/Saturday) but what’s not to love! When we have a staff meeting we have a party food buffet (My strict no eating rules during parties are rewarded with this!). However as wonderful as food maybe which type of food is best for which type of party?

Common food related questions may include:

  • Is this too unhealthy?
  • How many should I cater for?
  • What will the other parents think if I serve certain foods?
  • Will they eat a lot?
  • Do children still like Cheese and Pineapple on sticks? (Yes – always yes to this question whether you are adult or child- I love cheese and Pineapple on sticks!)
  • Should we do dessert?
  • Should we do party boxes?

To answer these questions (having watched and seen about every variation of party food known to man – from humous and olives to hotdogs to pitta wraps to pizza to jam sandwiches, we really have seen it all!

So where to begin with my food advice. Simply what will they like and enjoy? I have never seen any chocolate fingers left after a party but I have seen an awful lot of cheese sandwiches abandoned. So I decided to break this down into your options and party numbers:

Under 10 children?

Traditional party food all the way followed by Jelly and Ice cream! Two triangles per child and then some crisps, carrot sticks, cucumber (so many children love cucumber), mini sausages, biscuits and of course – cheese and pineapple! Party boxes can be great for this number as well as they save on mess!

10 – 15 children:

Party food as above with some bigger plates down the table of sausages/sausage rolls andtwo big Pizza’s, again plenty of biscuits, chocolate rolls and cakes – but bring these out as pudding!

15 children

Big bowls of crisps for the table and 3 – 4 large Pizza’s and then HOT DOGS!! One per child. Then cakes and biscuits as above, again only reveal them when the savoury food has been well devoured – usually when the first three children begin to finish!

You can always go with healthy options for each number and party boxes for each number too (at your own peril – I did it for 50 once…never again…) However always remember, keep it simple and don’t over think it, it they are hungry they will eat. Think about the time of day for the food and cater to how hungry they will be then and finally party food is fun and children are only little for a short period of time (I know I wish I could eat twenty party sausages and not feel guilty!) so as they say “Let them eat cake!”

Stuck for extra ideas? Here is a link to the BBC Good food children’s party page!

BBC Good Food

Birthday Parties on a Budget | NWC Parties

So, you are hosting your first kid’s party….

laurajane021 November 21st, 2016 No Comments
So, you are hosting your first kid's party....| NWC Parties

So, you are hosting your first kid’s party….the first piece of advice I have – buy a nice bottle of wine to look forward to that evening. Preparation is key!

Hosting your first party for your child can be a nerve-wracking experience.  I feel the only people who don’t dread it as much potentially are teachers – entertaining thirty children in a room does come naturally to them (speaking, as a daughter, of two teachers). However, for those to whom this is a new experience I have put together a few tips below to help you get through the hours before, during and after the party.

Top tip one:

Preparation is key however so is simplicity. If you are hosting for the first time maybe look to choose a leisure centre or a venue that supplies toddler toys, soft play and/or a bouncy castle – children will be happy to play independently on these for a good amount of time. Then adding a surprise element of entertainment such as a character visit. Check out our themed fun packages;

Click Here 

 

They can work perfectly to add something extra special to the party! Some simple things that children also love:

  • Balloons
  • Balls
  • Party Blowers
  • Music

Children are really happy to entertain themselves in parties and something as simple as lots of balloons can be the perfect answer!

Top tip two:

Keep the time frame down. Children and parents will thank you for opting for a 1 hour & 30-minute party, as opposed to two hours.  1 hour of games and entertainment and then 30 minutes for food and party bags. When children hit school age, weekends can be filled with parties (we have party hopped before now and have bumped into the same children in multiple parties in a weekend!). This also takes the pressure off filling the time as you can jam pack an hour and then they can eat and be off!

Top tip three:

Activities! Crafts, crafts and more crafts! I will always advocate for crafts, as children really do love them, and then pass the parcel, musical statues, and musical bumps. Also, if you are feeling more creative a little treasure hunt always goes down well.  For some fantastic craft packs, check out:

Click Here

 

 

Keeping activities and games simple and effective means the children won’t get bored and you will hopefully avoid too much stress!

Top tip four:

To host or to mingle? This comes down to what you would prefer your role to be and either way is perfectly acceptable! Some parents (my mother, and I can only imagine the parent I will one day be) love to host and lead the games and activities but you do have to prepare to be ruthless when telling children, they are out – brace yourself in advance for the tears!! Or alternatively, you can opt for someone to come in and host. We offer entertainer packages for £130.00 where we will host everything for you for the two hours with an entertainer (not a character) but someone who will ensure that the party runs smoothly and you can relax and enjoy it!

Finally, top tip five:

Don’t panic. Parents really should be able to purchase a “Keep Calm I’m hosting a kid’s party” t-shirt! Children will always have a great time if there are music, food, and sweets! Be confident in controlling the room and have faith that your little one will look back and love the parties that you hosted! And always remember it could never be worse than me deciding to break my arm and spending the night in hospital, the day before my brothers 5th Birthday, when 20 pirates were descending on our house and my mother had a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old to entertain with the rest of the children…and STILL we all had a great time!

 

Hope you have enjoyed reading,

“So, you are hosting your first kid’s party….”

Good luck and check out our other blogs below for bargain birthday ideas and how to get through the dreaded pass the parcel game…!

 

Blogs here!

 

 

Laura x

 

 

5 Top Tips – Birthday Parties on a Budget

laurajane021 October 19th, 2016 No Comments
Birthday Parties on a Budget | NWC Parties

When I was little Mum hosted each and every birthday party which inspired me to write; “5 Top Tips – Birthday Parties on a Budget”. Being one of four children – there were a lot to host. Did we ever have huge parties? Nope. Did we ever have other entertainers in – Nope. Did we love them – DID WE EVER!!!

I remember so many of our party themes from when we were little – My Barbie party, Rachel’s 101 Dalmatians party, bug parties, horse-riding parties (we went to the centre and finished at the house), football parties, pirate parties (which I remember vividly as I had broken my arm the night before said party – and was completely devastated to discover all of these people in my living room when I got home…I was an extremely dramatic six-year-old.).

I learnt to form the best – thank you mum, and if any of you know her I am sure you will agree – she is an extreme bargain hunter. When you have four children you need to be and yet at no point did we feel hard done by with our parties. So just how did she do that? And furthermore, how am I going to share these ideas without doing myself out of a job…

Here are my five top tips – Birthday parties on a budget….

Now we love a HUGE party too (who doesn’t?) – but here are some ideas for something on a smaller scale.

1: Keep the numbers low…

As obvious as it may seem to keep the party numbers low was a must in our house (I mean there are four of us already so we had half a party good to go!). Close and best friends (I would say ten is a perfect number), would be my best advice – sometimes birthday children can also feel a bit daunted in a big group!

2: “Ain’t no party like a House party!”

Parties at home are the best way to keep costs down – no need for room rental rates! Also, you can use up all of their house parties now so that when they are eighteen you can turn and say “Sorry Darling you had your house party when you were four – no chance now…”

3: Theme it – we love Fancy dress!!

Children love to dress up and if they are in a costume or if you have a theme it is a party already!! Themes will give you ideas for music and games, decorations and food – and will keep costs down! Keep your eyes open for our party food idea blog coming soon…

4: Prizes and Party Bags

Pound shops are brilliant – you can pick up loads of great prizes and they look fab too. Sweets are super cheap in Lidl, Aldi and Iceland – always my first stop! With regards to party bags – I am a huge believer in books – you can pick up some Princess and fairy craft books, pirate craft books and more for as little as 49p each (Lidl, Aldi, The Works), combine with some sweets and cake – sorted!

5: Activities

I LOVE our princess or character visits for this reason – they can be the one cost but can be so fantastic for home parties! Something different to break the party up and jam packed too. Also things like nail painting, crafts (www.bakerross.com) children love crafts and again you can theme them, cupcake decorating and they can eat them and Ice cream sundae making are great ideas. Combine these with three or four traditional party games and you are good to go!

 

I love parties big or small and I hope you find these “5 Top Tips – Birthday Parties on a Budget”, helpful?  Let us know below and we would love you to share yours!

Don’t forget to download our free E-book “Five tips to a stress-free kid’s party”

 

 

get in touch

For more information about NWC Parties, packages, prices or to book a party please contact Laura

Address: North Wales and North West

Email: enquiries@nwcparties.com

info@nwcparties.com

nwcparties@yahoo.com

Phone: 07913963891

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