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Party Guide Also weekday after school parties are always better attended as people often have other plans of a weekend this also leaves your weekend free too. 2. If you’re having your child’s party at home limit the number of children you invite to suit your available space. In the summertime a garden makes the perfect venue; just remember to have a contingency plan if the weather takes a turn for the worse. 3. If you’re working to a budget find out if there are any other children having birthdays near to your own child’s, as joint parties can be twice as fun and half the cost! 4. Avoid a last minute rush by buying party items as early as possible starting with non-perishables such as tableware and decorations and ending with the party food and birthday cake. 5. Allow at least half-an-hour for getting into your venue and setting-up the party. Arranging tables & chairs, tableware, decorations and food can take longer than you think. 6. If your party venue is set back off the road tie balloons or a banner round a nearby tree or lamp post, this way everybody will know where the party is! 7. Allocate tasks for any party helpers to avoid everyone trying to do the same thing or nothing at all. 8. Assign a family member or close friend to take photos of the party so you can concentrate on the party itself. Remember to check you have enough camera battery power and space on your memory card or film before leaving the house. 9. Most children are more willing to join in party games and enjoy themselves when there are less parents attending. If possible, limit the amount of adults staying at your child’s party to family and close friends. 10. Putting out too many chairs around the venue (excluding food table) encourages the children to sit down during the entertainment. Aim to put out enough chairs for the parents and only half the amount of children attending. 11. Setting out the food table running down the venue as opposed to across it allows more room for team games. 12. Leaving balloons lying around the venue floor will inevitably result in children hitting each other over the head with them and being burst. A better option is to attach balloons to the walls and then give them to the children at the end of the party. 13. If you have tiny guests attending the party, putting out some fun toys in a corner of the venue is a great way to keep them happy and occupied. 14. Putting name stickers on the children as they arrive allows your entertainer to get to know the children better making the party more fun and personal. 15. Sell-o-taping guest’s birthday card’s to presents ensures you know who to thank for what after the party. 16. Making note of parent’s mobile numbers of younger guest’s means you can get in touch if their child becomes upset at missing them or in the event of an emergency. 17. Feeding children in the middle of the party as opposed to afterwards gives the children a big energy boost for the second half of the party. 18. Attaching a favourite character helium balloon to the birthday child’s chair and seating them in the middle of the table is a great way to make him or her feel special at tea time! 19. Bringing out the birthday cake and singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to the birthday child after tea means you have plenty of time to cut and wrap the cake before the end of the party, ready to pop into party bags. 20. If you’re having Angela doing face painting, you could supply her with a list of the children’s names so that they can be called up individually, avoiding children queuing and missing the entertainment. 21. If you’re having a bouncy castle as well as an Entertainer wait until the party games are over before you inflate it, inflating a castle during the party distracts the children away from the Entertainer. 22. If you are planning on giving out party bags let your Entertainer know so he can inform the children, so nobody goes home empty handed. We would also be very grateful if you could put one of our "Partytime Cards" in your party bags, thankyou. 23. If you have enjoyed your Partytime Party, as we are sure you will, we would appreciate it if you could find the time to send us a quick note or email, that we could put on our "Testimonials Page" Hope you have a great party, best wishes, Carl Angela & Kyle... A birthday party is a special event. Your kids will be counting the days to the party, and some of that excitement can go into their share of the preparations. The Secret of a Successful Childrens Party The secret of a successful children's party is organisation, and you can avoid any last minute panic by following our kids party planner. The very first thing to do is decide on the date and where the party is to be held. Remember that some Venues and Partytime may need to be booked months in advance. 4 weeks before your party
3 weeks before your party
PARTY FOOD IDEAS  Whatever you decide to feed your party guests, you really don't have to spend a fortune on food,
especially when it comes to children.
Traditional party food comes in small amounts, with lots of variety, so the guest can help themselves to a plateful of fun, as opposed to a big meal. You may find a cold buffet more convenient as you can prepare it beforehand, and it can reliably feed people of all ages, but if your party venue has cooking facilities you might prefer to engage the help of a willing adult or two and provide a simple hot meal. Whatever you decide, you will find plenty of ideas below. Cold buffet: Sandwiches - cooked meat (ham, turkey, chicken, luncheon meat, corned beef); cheese; cheese spread; egg mayonnaise; pate; marmite; jam. You can present the sandwiches cut into small triangles, or why not cut them into shapes either with a knife or pastry cutter to make them more appealing? French stick with butter and a choice of cheese, cooked meat and pate. Dips - humous, taramasalata, or a few assorted shop-bought dips. Serve these with pitta bread, breadsticks, dipping chips and/or crudites (carrot and celery sticks, strips of pepper, raw cauliflower, for example). Savoury snacks such as sausage rolls, cocktail sausages, party eggs, vol au vents, quiche, pizza Samosas,onion bhajis, vegetable and/or meat pakoras Spring rolls Cooked chicken pieces such as buffalo wings or drumsticks, or even chicken nuggets Savoury nibbles such as crisps, twiglets, corn chips, tortilla chips, cheese biscuits, corn based snacks. Slices of cucumber, cherry tomatoes, celery Grapes, apple and orange slices, strawberries Sweet party food such as chocolate biscuits, cookies, mini doughnuts, fairy cakes, swiss rolls, chocolate rolls, muffins. If you have the budget, why not invest in a chocolate fountain and let the guests dip fruit, marshmallows and mini doughnuts in it? If you don't have enough room for a big spread, or feel faint at the thought of clearing the mess and the wastage of food, we recommend individual party boxes, either plain or themed. These food boxes can be filled with enough food for each child - and can even be personalised. They are especially useful for children with special dietary requirements, and they mean less mess!  Hot buffet:- Hot dogs and rolls with fried onions and ketchup. Chips, potato wedges, croquettes or other frozen potato product served with any of the following: Chicken nuggets or dippers Sausages (meat and/or vegetarian) Fish fingers Mini pizzas Burgers (meat and/or vegetarian Finally, here are a few delicious, child friendly party food recipes.
Pinwheel Sandwiches Gives a new twist to plain sandwiches and perfect for the kids to help with too! Equipment: rolling pin -
measuring equipment - knife - chopping board - clingfilm - mixing bowl -wooden
spoon
Ingredients: 4 medium/thick slices of wholemeal/white bread
85d/3oz/1/3 cup cream cheese
2 thin slices ham
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (optional)
1 tbsp finely chopped red pepper (optional)
Instructions: Cut the crusts off the bread and flatten each slice with a
rolling pin.
Chop the ham into small pieces and mix it into the cream
cheese with a wooden spoon. (Add the parsley and red pepper if you are using
it.)
Spread the cream cheese mixture over the slices.
Start at one side and roll up the bread like a swiss roll.
Wrap in cling film and put in the fridge for 1 hour.
Remove from the fridge and cut into slices
Traffic Light Jelly Watch their faces 'light up' with this funky jelly! Equipment: Measuring equipment -
Boiling water (6 to 8 glasses) - mixing bowl - whisk or electric
mixer -Spoon
Ingredients
150g/5oz packet strawberry jelly
150g/5oz packet orange jelly
150g/5oz packet lime jelly
Instructions Break the lime jelly into cubes and put them into a measuring jug.
Use boiling water and pour into the jug till there is 300ml/10fl oz of water in there.
Stir until all of the jelly has dissolved. Then add cold water
to make 600ml/2fl oz.
Pour the jelly into glasses and put in the fridge until set.
Repeat using the orange jelly but this time wait until the orange jelly is cool before
pouring on top of the lime jelly.
Put back into the fridge until set.
Finally, do the same with the strawberry jelly.
Fruity Kebabs You can use almost any fruit for fruity kebabs!. They are quick and easy to make
and a great way of getting kids to eat fruit!
Equipment Cocktail sticks (approx 20) or kebab skewers. Kebab skewers will make larger kebabs.
If you are using kebab skewers then make sure you soak them in
water for about 20 minutes. This will prevent splintering.
Chopping board
Knife (or for smaller children - provide the fruit already cut up). Children can cut up
soft fruit such as melon with a plastic serrated
knife.
Fruit ideas: Apple - Pear - Satsumas - White grapes - Red grapes - Melon - Kiwi - Banana - Mango - Strawberries -
Raspberries - Blackberries (If you are using apple or pear then sprinkle them with some orange juice. This will stop them from turning
brown.)
Instructions Simply put the fruit onto the stick! Simple!
Yummy extras
Serve the kebabs with a fromage frais or yoghurt dip!
Frequently Asked Questions's
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