In the process of planning your end of year playgroup Christmas party and not sure where to start?

December is already a busy time for many and planning a Christmas event shouldn’t be complicated.

Here are some ideas to help plan your party:

• Keep it simple – if the choices and options are overwhelming, scale it down to something you are able to achieve.
• Ask the members what they would like to do. This is a great way to get a list of ideas and go from there. Be aware however that you may not be able to please everyone (and that is OK).
• Budget an amount and ensure you stick to it.
• Budget an amount per child and let each session decide how they would like to spend it themselves.
• If your playgroup wants to have a bigger party, make sure you have enough volunteers to help organise it. If you’re unable to get help, then choose a simpler option – you don’t need to do it all yourself.
• Ask each family to bring a small plate of food to share (be COVID safe, washing hands before and after food, parents to serve to the children).
• Choose a day and time that will work for your playgroup. Holding a Christmas party during your usual playgroup session could be the best option as families are already free to attend. Or perhaps a weekend could work better as dads might be free to come along too. For bigger playgroups, you could combine all sessions to have one big party.
• Organising presents? Ask parents to purchase presents (set a budget) for their own child. They can bring it wrapped and labelled to put into a Santa sack. Another option could be to make up a small lolly bag for each child instead of a gift
• Venue ideas: your playgroup venue is a good first choice. If you’re looking for other options your local park could be a good choice. Or maybe even a play centre (less work involved and catering is already sorted).

Bonus idea. How about holding a quick AGM before the party starts? This way you’ve got majority of your members in attendance.

At the end of the day, your playgroup Christmas needs to be fun and relaxed. If committing to a Christmas party is too hard for your playgroup, then organising a members only ‘Family Fun Day’ around October/November might be a better option.

We hope this list helps with all your Christmas planning, if you have any other useful tips to add we’d love to know!

If you’re looking for Christmas party ideas, then have a look at what some of our playgroups have done here.