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Very English Fundraising Ideas

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St George’s Day & some very English Fundraising Ideas

Saint George – that renowned slayer of dragons is the patron saint of England (and a few other countries). His day falls on the 23rd April and is a great excuse to come up with some fantastic fundraising events and entertainment with a very English feel.
Decorations for St George’s Day
Decorations for St George’s Day should consist of:
Cross of St George bunting and flags
Pictures of Bobby Moore holding aloft The World Cup
Pictures of London landmarks

Start the day just right by offering a Full English Breakfast in your local hall, school diner, works canteen, local pub etc.

A typical Full English will include:
Bacon, eggs, sausages, black pudding, baked beans, tomatoes and mushrooms. Followed by toast and marmalade. All washed down with a few cups of tea.

Charge your guests by the plate or the individual portions. Who could resist.

What’s more the local press will love the story and pictures of your fundraising fry up will be sure to feature.

Alternatively team up with a local butcher and produce a special Full English Home Delivery Pack. Simply put all the ingredients together in a decorated bag called The Full Monty.

Either sell them in the couple of days before the 23rd or hand deliver to individual addresses the night before.

St George’s Day Special – Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding
Roast Beef the very stuff of Olde England.
Find a venue where you could serve this traditional English Roast Dinner. With lovely roast beef, yorkshires, roast potatoes, parsnips, carrots and peas with a beautiful thick gravy.

For afters its got to be a classic English Pudding:
Spotted Dick, Apple Crumble, Treacle Tart, Bakewell Tart, Bread and Butter Pudding. All smothered in lovely golden yellow custard.

As the cooking for this is a bit more involved you may like to team up with a local pub, bar or restaurant. You organise the event, publicise it and sell tickets. They provide the venue and the catering for an agreed split of the profits. For them this is a great marketing opportunity. They will love the publicity, and having their place full of potential new customers. You get the chance to raise some easy money.

St George’s Day Special – A Classic English Cream Tea
Ok a bit more refined but just as lip smackingly gorgeous. The best venue for this one is someone’s garden or the local village green. Serve up delicious home-made scones with butter, clotted cream, strawberry jam and a lovely pot of tea.

St George’s Day Special – Cockney Knees Up
That’s right we are all off to London Town for a night of pie and mash. A pint or two of best bitter. And a right good sing song around the old piano.

Partnering with a pub is again a good idea for this one, but the bar of a social or sports club would also work well.

This is the sort of event where you really need a good host or hostess, someone who can really get the party going.

Highlights of the evening could be:
Getting a few volunteers to do a music hall turn.
Find out who knows their Whistle and Flutes from their Kettle and Hob with a Cockney Rhyming Slang Quiz. Why Did Dirty Den Do It? and Who was always looking for her Little Willie? What about a special quiz all about the TV Soap Opera Eastenders

How Many buttons on The Pearly Kings Coat – OK a bit of needle work for someone but it would be a really nice touch to the evening.

A good old fashioned sing song. People will sing if you give them a sheet with the words on it, though a few drinks before hand help too!

Fundraising Quiz Night – All About England
Fundraising quizzes can be good fun and St George’s Day is the perfect excuse for a quiz night all about England. Just give all your rounds an English slant.
Question rounds could be things like:
English history
English sport
The geography of England
English TV shows
English pop and rock music
This would be perfect combined with a meal such as a curry or fish and chips.

Nothing beats a good fun day

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Whether it’s a small corporate event for 50 guests or a large scale event for up to 3,000 people, we can provide party and event entertainment for all ages to keep everyone entertained all day long.

There are key aspects you need to take into account when planning such event. From safety and insurance to risk assessments, it’s imperative to have all the necessary legislation in place.

To ensure your Corporate event or private party entertainment is a giant triumph and goes ahead without any hiccups, here are 6 key things to think about when planning a fun day…

1. Risk Assessment
Ensure when assign party supplier and its equipment it should have it’s own comprehensive risk assessment to ensure it is safe and secure to protect all those on the premises.

It is compulsory to carry out a risk assessment in order to comply with current UK safety regulations and laws. If you have never done this before, rest assured it isn’t as scary as it sounds.
Besides, once all the paperwork is out of the way, you can concentrate on organising a successful event!

Now there is the general risk assessment of the site plan, such as the routes in and out for cars and attendees, and you’ll obviously need a safety plan for any marquees etc you have, but here’s the complete list of all our products’ risk assessment and method statements.

2. Choose the date wisely
If you don’t want your fun day to be a wash out, choose the date carefully. Summertime is better for outdoor fun but as we all know with the great British weather, a contingency plan is always needed incase it rains!

Try to do your homework too and find out if any other big community events are taking place around the same time. If the date clashes it will affect how many people turn up.

3. Venue & Time
Where is the fun day going to take place and at what time?

You need to decide where the event will be held and book it well in advance. In terms of location, make sure there is plenty of room for large outdoor equipment set up.

What time will the event kick off? If it’s a family fun day, it needs to be early enough for children to attend but bear in mind you need to give yourself plenty of time to get everything up and running on the day.

Likewise, time should be taken into consideration for the clean up.

4. Read/shout all about it!
How will people know about your fun day? Promote the event through local businesses, press, radio, newsletters, emails, digital PR and posters.

Marketing is key, so shout about it through all possible platforms including online blog posts, paid search and social media.

What’s more, shout about it DURING the event. Get a hashtag going on Twitter, encourage spectators to share pictures on Facebook and Instagram and get lots of photos to give the press.

5. Legalities
Equipment
The main legal requirements that the equipment and equipment provider must adhere to are the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HASAWA) and the provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER).
In practice this is interpreted through ETIS 7 which is currently the HSE advice for best practice and is almost identical to BS EN 14960:2006.

Food and Drink
If you are selling food and drink at your fun day, make sure you look at the Food Standards Agency to follow their guidelines.

Raffles and Tombolas
There are strict and complex laws relating to larger raffles and lotteries which you’d need to check the Gambling Commission website for more details. We recommend selling raffle tickets on the day and drawing at the event to avoid needing a license.

Council licences
You’ll need to apply to your local council if you plan on providing any of the below:
– selling alcohol
– live entertainment
– holding a collection in a public place
Speak to the venue beforehand though as they’ll probably already hold a licence for you.

6. What happens after the event?
Too many people think about what will happen after the event, as they’re so caught up with planning it.

The follow up is just as important as the event itself.

Make sure you send a thank you email to all suppliers and providers that helped to make the event the great fun day that it was! Also, send out a press release to local media for print and online.

We all love a great success story and it can have a big impact on brand awareness! Who knows, you may be asked to organise the event again next year.

A Glamourous Corporate Event

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The Grammys are a perfect occasion for a party, as the award show provides you with all the theme you’ll need. Let’s examine a few of the things that make the Grammys so fun and such a great opportunity to party with your friends!

The Glitz

What would the Grammys be without the red carpet, the paparazzi, the atmosphere of celebrity? Decorate your party with all the accoutrements of fame. We suggest a gold and black design, punctuated with red highlights. Hire caterers and party suppliers to treat your guests like stars. The point is to create the right environment, so your guests will feel as special and pampered as the yearly nominees!

The Glamour

Really, it’s the dresses. From J-Lo’s notorious dress in 2000 to Lady Gaga’s entrance encased in an egg, the Grammys have become known for the beautiful and strange outfits gracing the red carpet. Challenge your guests to either show up in one of the fame gowns or just wear their most elegant ensemble. It isn’t every day we get to get decked out in our best, so encourage your friends to go all out!

The Entertainment

After all, it’s the Grammys. Your party needs music! Hire a DJ or a Party Band to play nominated songs during commercials. If you really want to get into the fun, hire a stand-up comedian to entertain throughout and, at the end, to give out awards for Best Dressed! Maybe hire a few performers to mingle with guests to really add to the celebrity vibe.

The Ceremony

Now, we bet you’re wondering how you can fit all of this into one party? Set up the show outside or rent a large venue big enough for all your party’s needs. Don’t forget to pass around a ballot for the awards. Whoever guesses the most winners can get–that’s right–a Grammy! Another fun idea: create drinking games around multiple nominees. Every time they win, take a drink!

The Grammys are a wonderfully elegant night, so make sure you take all these factors into consideration when you’re planning your party. You may not be attending the Grammys, but that doesn’t mean you can’t feel like a winner!

50’s Party entertainment

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The ’50s were a time when America was finally recovering from the war, rock ‘n’ roll was emerging, Hollywood ruled, and screaming teenage girls were swooning over Elvis. Are there better reasons to throw a party? Ladies, break out your A-Line skirts, and guys, slick back your hair. It’s time for a 1950s Party!

Decorations and Costumes

Wondering what to wear? Think Grease. For ladies, the ’50s look was longer skirts with collared blouses or T-shirts, a coordinating scarf tied around the neck or ponytail, and ankle socks with sandal shoes. High ponytails with tight curls are a classic girly hairstyle. For guys who want a tough look, pair a leather jacket with tight jeans and a plain white T-shirt. Don’t forget the greased pompadour! For a more conservative look, tuck a short-sleeved collared shirt into slacks and add a bow tie. Part your hair to the side and you’re set.

Old Hollywood costumes are all about the sparkle. Beads, sequins, glitter, and form-fitting dresses were “in” as women started embracing their curves. Throw on a feathered boa or sheer shawl to top it off. For guys, tuxedos are perfect. If not, a tailored suit will also work!

Food and Drink

Serve the classics! Hamburgers, hot dogs, fries, and milkshakes are great for a retro menu. Toss some glass bottles in ice, and don’t forget the red and white striped straws! Fill old sweets jars with classic candy like gumballs or liquorice, and set up a ginger beer float station to complete the vintage vibe. Or just add a 50’s twist to classic desserts like cupcakes, cakes, or cookies.

Entertainment

Keep your guests talking about your party long after it’s over with a little 1950’s party Entertainment. Celebrity Impersonators like Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley will add excitement to the party, while Party Entertainers or Party performers can get your guests up and dancing!

Hire a Photo Booth and provide some ’50s-themed props (cat-eye glasses, paper soda jerk hats, bow ties, scarves, boas, sunglasses, etc.), or set up your own. You could also provide photo ops with larger cut-outs, like convertibles, Hollywood premiers, or vintage signs.

Games like the limbo, hula-hooping contests, and hopscotch were all popular back then, so set up a space to hold some friendly competitions.

School reunion party ideas

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It maybe a many years since you left school, but the memories make it feel like it was only yesterday! Take yourself back in time by planning a school reunion where you and your colleagues can relive your memories. Getting a class together and pulling off a reunion party is no small feat.

We’ve put together a few guidelines to help get you through it.

You may have many school friends on facebook or such like, but if there are people you just can’t remember or if someone has disappeared off the radar then you old school should have a list with all this information.

There are always other school friends that you are still in contact with that will have school friends that you have forgotten about. Send everyone a paper invitation to get the initial word out and create a Facebook page or website for your event where you can post reminders, updates, and information for your invited guests. Take this opportunity to start getting your guests excited about the reunion!

Theme & Venue

Remember to consider your theme and potential decorations as you hunt for that perfect venue. Use Party suppliers and securing the venue makes planning decor that much easier, so you can begin creating your ideal atmosphere. Follow your general theme and have fun with it! Contact your classmates and request photos and keepsakes from the ‘good ole days’ to hang around the rooms or to create a nostalgia table!

Entertainment

You know the songs that just seem to recapture moments from your school experience? Have a DJ and the music bring you right back to those days with the perfect music to set the tone and liven up the party.

Keep the party going and conversation flowing with collages of old photos and videos. Everyone’s got those slightly embarrassing pictures of good friends they’d love to share. Stick with fun-inducing entertainment, give out prizes for games, or even have awards! Capture the new memories by booking a Photographer or even a photo booth!

Refreshments

From great decor and music to seeing old friends, your classmates will be having a ball! Add to the fun by providing refreshments for your guests. If your reunion will be a more formal event, you may want to have a sit-down dinner, but for more casual atmospheres, cocktails and hors d’oeuvres will do just fine! Call local restaurants (maybe an old school favourite?) and have party caterers.

Tying Up Loose Ends

Now that you’ve got most of the big stuff secured, don’t forget the last few details! Be sure to find a potential hotel to suggest for traveling guests and send out this information as soon as possible to allow everyone time to book a room. For those hard-to-reach, make a point to call around 3 months before the reunion to help get every classmate you can to the event. Lastly, remember to contact all special invitees such as teachers and headmasters/mistresses! The more the merrier! With all these tips under your belt, we’re confident you’re ready to plan the best possible school reunion your classmates could have imagined!

Entertainment for team building

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Cycling Competition

This is a fab form of interactive entertainment that allows two guests at your event to compete and see who gets the best time. Wonderful entertainment for events or parties where you have a few prizes to give away and the best bit is that there are no bikes endlessly coursing in and around your event. These two pedal powered beasts are attached to a small plinth to take up a minimum of space at your venue. Just plug in and go!

Augmented Reality Treasure Hunt

AR or augmented reality (to give it its full name) is all the rage in the past few weeks thanks to the launch of Pokémon Go. It’s a simple enough technology that even the most technophobic of guests will be able to understand. The virtual reality game makes use of your GPS and camera on your phone to create fun photos and make it appear as though you are not alone in the room. It’s not just Pokémon or solving clues that the technology is limited to either. As the photo shows, you could hold an entire band in your hand!

Virtual Reality Team Building

The VR stands for virtual reality, which is similar to augmented reality, but a lot more immersive. Anyone who is involved in the experience must wear a headset in order to take part, which instantly transports you to another building or world, where you have to work together in order to get ahead. Imagine being teleported inside a video game and that is a perfect way to explain the entertainment you’ll get from a virtual reality team building experience. The technology has already been hailed by Facebook and HTC (to name but two) and there have even been events specially created where you get to defeat zombies as a team. What fun!

Interactive Tiles

Dancing is great fun but there are always a few guests at an event who don’t really fancy getting involved as everybody else does the Macarena. The solution? Some interactive tiles of course! Perfect for an enhanced dance mat experience or put in place as a competitive game, interactive dance tiles can be used to ensure that getting fit is a bonus at your party. The more feet the merrier (perhaps the more steps, the bigger the prize?); this is an event installation you won’t want to miss. And yes, you can totally recreate that scene from the Billie Jean music video.

Five brilliant ways to remember your event

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Eyecon Art

Okay so technically we’re breaking our own rule in that opening paragraph as Eyecon Art is essentially a photograph. But don’t go thinking that this is the same as hiring a photographer for an event. Rather than capture you standing awkwardly by the DJ as you ponder which canapés to chow down on, Eyecon Art will have you heading home with an incredibly close-up shot of your eye. Every iris is unique and dare we say it, look tremendous!

Caricaturist

If you’re looking to hire a caricaturist for an event, then you have got to make sure that you are fine with having your eyebrows accentuated and your nose looking a little larger than in real life. But that’s all part of the fun! A good caricaturist knows how to draw a cartoon-style representation of their subject without causing offence and the best part is that with modern technology being what it is, you can take home a paper or digital version.

Silhouette Artist

The heights of the vaudeville era are in full display in the form of a silhouette artist, who can snip your profile into a piece of black card in the space of a matter of minutes. The best bit about this incredible form of party entertainment is that you can go home and frame your silhouette later, with each individual creation being stuck onto a quality back lining.

Mash Machine

Why does everything that provides a memory of an event have to be visual? The answer is that they don’t, especially when you’re dealing with the Mash Machine, an fabulous box of audio delights which allows you to be the DJ! After moving around a few small squares (or even chocolates which you could take home!), you’ll be created your very own music track with drum beats, bass lines and a solid rhythm guitar section to impress your friends. If you make a particularly compelling piece of music then you can save your track and enjoy it on the way home on your iPod. Amazing.

Screen Printing

Whether you call it screen printing, letter pressing or something completely different, these fabulous contraptions can have you created your very own work of art in no time! Popular at Somerset House every summer, you too can discover the art of the print. Remember not to limit yourself to paper or card; should you so desire you can create your design on a T-shirt. Wear your creation and remember that party in style!

The Wallace Collection

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The first thing to note about The Wallace Collection is that it is contained within 25 glamorous galleries as well as a contemporary glazed courtyard that has to be seen to be believed. All of these areas are available to be hired for your corporate event, private party or wedding a beautiful setting in central London for somebody who is a huge fan of the ‘hidden gem’.

Although located near one of the most famous roads in the world, The Wallace Collection somehow manages to retain its status as a location only the most informed local or tourist knows about. You and your guests are able to enjoy masterpieces in virtually every room and when you hire the venue, the money goes straight back into preserving the collection for future generations to enjoy.

If you’re looking to hire a venue for a reception or dinner then there a multitude of fabulous locations to pick from depending on the numbers of your party. To entertain guests of up to 160 then the aforementioned courtyard is a must, with pre-dinner drinks able to be enjoyed in the Drawing Rooms Suite on the first floor, allowing lucky attendees to enjoy a private viewing which includes the opportunity to see The Laughing Cavalier in person.

The courtyard itself offers an exceptional space with which to enjoy background music from a harp to guitar, right through to a four-piece jazz band for maximum party entertainment value! For those looking for a more intimate occasion, the Venetian Room caters to just 24, whilst the Dining Room can hold up to 40 guests.

But perhaps your guests aren’t attending with dinner on the brain? If this is the case, then perhaps they are here to enjoy your wedding day! There are a number of incredible venues in which to exchange vows throughout the capital, so The Wallace Collection focuses on the most important part – the evening wedding reception! Naturally as an event entertainment supplier, we would say this, but we must stress just how gorgeous a reception one can enjoy in the Drawing Room Suite. Decorated with French silk, you will be able to delight friends and family amongst treasures that previously belonged to Marie Antoinette and Madame de Pompadour, to name but two. Guests can then enjoy speeches, live music or a dance to a DJ in the courtyard.

The Wallace Collection really is a stunning space in which to enjoy entertainment and is truly beautiful in the way it blends different styles of the old and the new.

80’s themed party ideas

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With Stranger Things currently being talked about by almost everyone with their finger on the pop-culture pulse and a political landscape that looks similar to the rule of the Iron Lady, the eighties appear to be everywhere at the moment and we thought we’d help you out in looking to hire party entertainment for an 80s themed party by accumulating a few fab acts inspired by the decade that brought us Bananarama, The Bangles and Bros.

Retro Games

Let’s be honest, if you’ve arranged an eighties party and there’s no Pacman, Dig Dug or Galaxian, then someone’s going to have to apologise! Yes, some of those games may very well have been created in the 1970s but the 1980s are when they really took off. With our Joypad retro game hire, you’ll be able to play all your favourite 8-bit hits including Super Mario, Sonic, Tetris and more!

Comedy dance groups

Nothing quite says the 1980s like questionable facial hair and the rise of the shell suit, which dominated high streets for some bizarre reason. Why not hire a comedy dance 80’s act who bring a touch of comedy to a routine and can actually dress in pretty much any way that you require. We’ve

Canape Girls

There’s just something about the 1980s, isn’t there? When it comes to picking a party theme, it has the right mixture of questionable cool alongside the ridiculous. Canape Girls are available to present your guests with a variety of flavoursome foods, Canape Girls will look right at home at your event with a flamboyance that wouldn’t look out of place in a Peter Greenaway film.

Speed Cuber

Alongside video games, the Rubik’s Cube is a classic image that embodies everything we remember about the eighties. Rigid corners and sides, incredibly dull colour schemes and a finale that’ll leave you amazed and overjoyed. Yes, speed cubers don’t just solve the blasted puzzle but do it so quickly that you’ll be desperate to learn the tricks of the trade! You get to mess it up and less than ten seconds later, you’ll get it back in perfect condition! How? We have no idea but it’s crazily impressive party entertainment to have at your event!

Hula Hoopers

We were unsure if hula-hooping is more of a seventies or eighties thing, but whichever one you decide, we still think it’d look right at home at a 1980s themed evening. These amazing hula hoopers can revolve hoops around various limbs at the same time, all whilst chatting to you and posing for selfies. An incredible skill matched with a marvellous costume, Hula Hoopers make for tremendous party and event entertainment.

History Themed Events

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Who doesn’t love a bit of history? When it comes to themed parties, many people tend to pick something based on a television show, film or book series. They might even theme it around the current time of year or something that’s currently in the news. But why not have more historical parties? History themed events can be great fun and here we’ll run through a couple of good ideas to get you up and running.

Location, location, location!

It’s no good holding your historical party in a venue that doesn’t suit what you’re aiming for. Sure, you could probably hold your event in the local village hall but it doesn’t exactly scream Henry VIII and grandiose, does it? What we’re trying to say is that it doesn’t really scream ‘ye olde’ when it was built in the 1970s. No, what you need is to hire a venue for your event that actually has a bit of history to it! We’re thinking Historical Royal Palaces Hampton Court Palace, Banqueting House or even the British Museum, which has a fine catalogue of ancient items nestled within its walls. So if you want to go historical, start with the setting!

Costumes!

We know that not all people like fancy dress, deeming it to be a lot of effort compared to just turning up in your work clothes. But not every event has a historical theme affixed to it! Costumes are a must if you want to take guests back in time properly and if you’re really wanting to make your party stand out, why not hire costumed characters to complete the look? Coming with astonishingly detailed costumes that make for fabulous photos, we provide actors who can play anyone from history be it a poor peasant worker through to royalty!Don’t forget to hire a costume for yourself as well!

Royal Footmen and Jesters!

Well it’d hardly be a historical affair without some form of comedy would it? The royals famously enjoyed being entertained at their banquets by many a fool and you can recreate this by hiring royal footmen or jesters to add to the flavour of your historically themed event. They don’t just meet and greet either; the jesters are able to perform on stilts, entertain with incredible acrobatics and can even hula hoop if you ask them to! We admit that this may not be as historically accurate as other suggestions but we’re fairly certain that your guests will be beaming from ear to ear at their antics!

Lutists!

It’s not really a party if you don’t have music now, is it? We acknowledge that the idea of long summer nights is now a couple of months behind us, but that’s no excuse not to have some form of olde entertainment front and centre for guests to enjoy. Be they providing background music or a short and intimate show, lutists are sure to impress, you’ll almost certainly believe that you have gone back in time.

A Memento!

What’s the point in having an incredible party if you can’t take home a lovely memento at the end of the evening? We don’t think many guests really want a party bag comprising of a piece of cake, a cheap toy and a pencil, so why not go one further and allow them to go home with a caricature or silhouette outline of themselves? These have been extremely popular forms of entertainment historically and still go down well today. Great fun and you’ll be able to remember your history themed party for time immemorial.