PARTY… IN A BOX IDEAS TEA PARTY Afternoon tea may only have been invented in 1840 but people have been hosting tea parties for thousands of years. Tried and tested, tea parties offer people an excellent opportunity to take some time out of their day, relax, socialise and enjoy a sweet treat. Keep it simple, or go all out, a tea party offers all sorts of options. YOU WILL NEED: Tea, Coffee, Milk, Sugar Biscuits and Cake (ask friends and family to bring these with them) You may need some volunteers to help out Cups, Saucers, Teaspoons and Plates Invitations or Posters Raffle tickets HOW TO RAISE MONEY • Sell tickets or charge an entry fee • Donation buckets dotted around the venue. • Organise a raffle – Ask local shops for donated prizes • A market stall – not just for arts and crafts, but baked goods, jams etc. as well. You could even turn it into a bring and buy sale. Encourage everyone to bring something with them. • Games – charge the guests a small fee to participate in games - guess the weight (cakes)/ number of sweets in a jar, host a quiz, fancy dress competition. TEA PARTY WHEN AND WHERE Your venue will probably depend on the type of tea party you want to hold, but locations in the community may be the best thing. • Think about a church hall, or community centre. • You may even be able to hold it at a national trust location. • If the weather is better, why not hold it in your local park. • Be aware of issues like access and licenses re food, alcohol and entertainment. HINTS AND TIPS: Think about a theme – it doesn’t have to be anything too fancy, but you could pick a decade and encourage people to dress up, or you could go for a formal affair, with crusts cut off the sandwiches. Why not get in touch with your local newspaper or other media outlets? If you let us know, we can provide you with a press release. It is a great way to publicise the event in the local community and boost your fundraising efforts PARTY… IN A BOX IDEAS KIDS PARTY YOU WILL NEED: • Face paints • Cakes or biscuits as well as decorating materials • Drinks • Puppet making materials • Plain t-shirts and pens. Making t-shirts to sell! • Volunteers – parents would be perfect to help set up and supervise some of the activities. HOW TO RAISE MONEY Tickets or entry fee You may think about charging a small small fee for activities – face painting, decorating biscuits and cakes, puppet making. Encourage the kids to make t-shirts, or cards and then sell them. Games – guess the name of the bear, egg and spoon races, pin the tail on the donkey. KIDS PARTY WHEN AND WHERE Your venue will probably depend on the type of party you want to hold, but locations in the community may be the best thing. • A school hall, church hall, community centre would be ideal in these circumstances. You will need room for activities as well as for parents and kids to sit down. • A weekend is the most obvious choice, but also consider the school holidays. • How long would the party last? A few hours in the afternoon, or throughout the day with kids and parents coming and going? HINTS AND TIPS: 1. Remember some tea and coffee for parents. You need to cater to them as well and they are the ones with the money!! 2. Hold a treasure hunt. Play guessing games. Make party crafts. There's no limit on the activities your child's party can have without costing you much, if anything. You don’t need to hire anyone, put your creativity to the test. If this feels a little overwhelming, you could ask a childrens party planning experts to donate their time. 3. Be careful what you charge for. Fundraising is important, make sure that you pitch the price appropriately. The activities are predominately for kids, but the money will come from the parents. PARTY… IN A BOX IDEAS INTERNATIONAL EVENING International evenings can be great family events, open to the whole community. By asking people to bring a plate, bowl, or dish of their favourite food from around the world, you could assemble a wide range of cuisine. Partner this with entertainment in the form of singing and dancing, and you’ll be on course for a whale of a time.! YOU WILL NEED: • Tables to serve food • Cups, Saucers, Teaspoons and Plates • Decorations! You may be able to find a friend with a sewing machine to make some flag bunting. Finding cheap colourful fabric is definitely a possibility. Balloons could also be found for a reasonable price. • Entertainment - think local! Ask within your community for dancers, choirs and musicians. You’ll probably need more than one. • Drinks HOW TO RAISE MONEY Ticket sales – think about selling family tickets as well as individual ones. If you can encourage guests to bring food to keep costs down and to widen the variety of the food, that would be ideal. You could even ask local restaurants to donate in return for advertising. That way you’re aware in advance of the variety available. Drink sales – Drinks may be an area that you can raise money, but be careful, make sure you are aware of licensing regulations. Raffle Craft sale INTERNATIONAL EVENING WHEN AND WHERE This can be a great family event, so think about school or church halls. If it’s in a venue that local families are familiar with, they’re more likely to attend. Whilst securing a venue can often be easier on a week night, consider your audience, if you want to invite families the weekend might be your best bet HINTS AND TIPS: 1. Encourage people to bring homemade food, but let them know it doesn’t have to be. They key to hosting an event like this is to make sure that you have plenty, so make sure people are aware that whatever they bring will be appreciated and enjoyed. 2. The evening will need some entertainment. Local dance groups, orchestras and choirs are worth considering. If you hold it in a school, students may perform. 3. 4. Why not encourage guests to wear their national dress? Be aware that if people bring food, there needs to be label on it, and a list of ingredients available! You need to be aware of allergic reactions. PARTY… IN A BOX IDEAS STREET MEET Street parties are a great way to meet your neighbours and build community spirit, but they can also be excellent fundraisers. Street meets don’t require permission from the council, as it is held on a driveway, parking area, front garden or end of a cul-de-sac. YOU WILL NEED: Tables, chairs, cups, plates and cutlery Decorations Music Food HOW TO RAISE MONEY Donation buckets Street Games/Competitions Have a barbeque and charge for food. A bring and buy sale. A promise auction – neighbours’ auction of their time and skills for each other. It doesn’t have to be big, things such as ‘2 hours of babysitting’ or ‘an hour of gardening’ are perfect! STREET MEET WHEN AND WHERE The venue speaks for itself, although be aware about the difference between a meet and a party. Any concerns, have a look on here http://www.streetparty.org.uk/. It’s really up to you when to do it, but a bank holiday could be perfect. HINTS AND TIPS: 1. You need to gauge interest before the planning gets too far underway. A street meet targets quite a specific group, so it is important to find out who would be interested. 2. A street meet shouldn’t need a license provided its only publicised to local residents, but it is always worth checking with your local authority. If you do decide that you want the road closed off, you need to check with your council several weeks in advance. 3. To keep costs down, why not ask people to bring food, or local businesses may be willing to donate food, invitations etc. Why not think about your local estate agents, they may be willing to sponsor the event. PARTY… IN A BOX IDEAS GALA Perhaps the most daunting of the party ideas laid out here, but arguably the most rewarding in terms of funds raised. YOU WILL NEED: Hall/ Ballroom Dinner Drinks Prizes/Sale items Invitations and Place Cards Entertainment Volunteers HOW TO RAISE MONEY Tickets – whilst ticket sales are always likely to be an important component of any fundraiser, when throwing a gala, they need to include more than just entry. Food, drinks (up to a point) and entertainment need to be covered, and if you’re going up market, your ticket price should reflect this. A silent auction! Who do you know who might be able to donate a ‘money can’t buy’ prize? The name of a character in a box? Afternoon tea with a famous individual? Sponsorship in return for advertising. STREET MEET WHEN AND WHERE Venue is a particularly important starting point here. It sets the tone for the type of evening you’re planning and will provide a base from which to establish the entertainment etc. It will also help determine cost, from which you can think about ticket price. HINTS AND TIPS: 1. Once a venue has been decided on, save the date cards or invitations need to be sent rather rapidly. 2. When it comes to entertainment, think about local bands, singers, dancers, drama groups, etc. If you’re hiring a band, remember to leave room for a dance floor! 3. To keep costs down when organising a gala, using your network and requesting donations becomes particularly important. 4. Think about trying to find a formal sponsor or sponsors and offer a range of packages at different prices. A sponsor could pay in the region of £500 in exchange for VIP tickets, recognition at the event, and their logo on invites or the menu. 5. Remember to send thanks you letters to all those who contributed to the night. PARTY… IN A BOX Organising a party for more than twenty people can seem a little daunting, so here is all you need to get moving towards that £500 target! IDEAS First things first, what are you going to do? Whilst it should appeal to you, you do need to think about those you’re planning to invite. Here are just a few ideas: Garden Party Afternoon Tea Kids Party World Cup Party Cocktail Party Dinner Party Gala International Evening Street Meet Karaoke Murder Mystery Ceilidh or Barn Dance Themed Disco: 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s FOR A SUCCESSFUL PARTY In order to make your party a successful fundraising event, you should consider the following… 1. The Venue 2. The People 3. Fundraising 4. Advertising and Marketing THE VENUE This really depends on what type of party you’re planning on holding. For example, a gala is going to require a far more upmarket venue than a karaoke. You may not even need to book somewhere. Street meets or tea parties could be ideal for outside venues, but beware of that famous British weather! Some venues are likely to require a deposit. It may help to hold your quiz on a quieter night of the week. Given this, and that it’s for charity, you may be able to negotiate a minimum spend at the bar rather than a deposit. THE PEOPLE Some of the ideas listed above are targeted towards a clear audience - a kids party for instance, but others can be adaptable. An international evening has the potential to be a great family event, with dinner, drinks and entertainment. If the event is of general interest, begin by targeting your existing contacts to see if they would be likely to support it. If your friends don’t want to come, why should strangers? FUNDRAISING The fundraising target is £500, so think outside the box. Are you going to sell tickets, charge an entry fee, or ask for donations? Tickets alone may not reach that target, but they should make a significant contribution. Selling tickets can be pretty difficult, particularly if you haven’t identified your target audience. There is little point securing high value prizes for an auction if you’ve charged too high a price for entry. IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES BY: • Presenting an attractive event. By all means pick a theme, but don’t overdo it, or it may become too niche and you narrow your audience. • Contact an identifiable and reachable target audience – start with friends and family, and go from there. • Pitching your price appropriately – if it’s a family event, consider offering a merged ticket price, such as two adults, two children for £10 etc. • Recruiting plenty of ticket sellers. OTHER WAYS TO RAISE MONEY You may decide that ticket sales aren’t the way forward, so you may want to consider alternatives. Options here can include leaving donation buckets around the venue for people to pay what they consider fair. To make lots of money, try diversifying what you offer your target group, as this will create more channels for generating income. Inside this pack, we’ve outline five possible parties that you could organise and in each we give you an idea of the ways in which you can maximise fundraising potential. ADVERTISING AND MARKETING Once you’ve got a when and where sorted, you need to ensure you get people through the door! All of your hard work will be for nothing if nobody turns up! Think bigger than your network! Posters, flyers, local papers and radio together with good old-fashioned word of mouth are all avenues to go down. In the modern world the use of technology and such sites as Twitter and Facebook are sure-fire ways of increasing your prospective audience. A week or two before the event, send a reminder to everyone that has expressed an interest in attending. IN THE LEAD UP TO YOUR EVENT… AS SOON AS POSSIBLE (1 MONTH – 6 WEEKS IN ADVANCE) Choose and book a venue (check capacity, equipment and licenses) Estimate initial expenses and expected net profit Choose entry method (Buy in advance, or on the door) Decide on an entry fee /ticket price Find volunteers to help on the night Start taking note of those interested Begin promoting the party outside of your network Make a draft of your program (raffle/auction/entertainment) Begin to solicit donations and look for sponsors (this includes food and entertainment) Send out invites (if necessary) Secure any permits or licenses (if necessary) 2 WEEKS BEFORE Send a reminder to everyone who has expressed interest Contact local press Confirm that all entertainment etc. are aware of the event and planning to attend. 1 WEEK BEFORE Make a "to take" and a “to do" list Brief everyone involved Send a reminder to everyone who has expressed interest Make arrangements for collecting donations Print all the materials you need LAST MINUTE LIST On the night Set up and decorations A 'running sheet' / 'schedule' Sound check Another quick briefing for volunteers Have a plan to keep money secure Set up food and drink (make sure you have a list of ingredients for allergies) Prizes for games, raffle and auction Raffle tickets Take lots of photos! After the event Collect all the money raised, and send it back to Street Child. Send a thank you to those who made your event happen – guests/volunteers/sponsors FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS HOW CAN I RETURN MY MONEY TO STREET CHILD You have done a great job to support Street Child’s valuable work in Sierra Leone and Liberia, and we are very grateful for all of your effort. To send Street Child the funds you raised, just get in touch with your one of us at info@street-child.co.uk. We will be able to instruct you on the best, most effective and safe st way to get the money back to us. CAN I USE THE STREET CHILD LOGO? We’d love you to use the Street Child logo at your events and on Facebook, but please ensure that you clearly state the fact that you are fundraising on behalf of Street Child. It is important that there is no confusion between those that are raising money for us and official representatives of the charity itself