Average cost for a 7year olds party?

[carrottopper]

How much would you say roughly you spend on a 7year olds party for 20 friends, cake, food and party bags included?

What are you planning? Soft play would be about £200, clip and climb an awful lot more (double?). If you aren't going for an activity, are you hiring a hall or hosting it at home? (We couldn't host that many at home, but DD has friends who could and have.) Because hall hire would be around £50 where I am. Too many variables to give you an estimate, though I will say that the expensive activity parties DD has been to (did I mention clip and climb?!) have had fewer than 10 guests, presumably to keep costs down.

So would you say around £200-£250? I always feel like I've spent too much. We've always done an entertainer, hall hire, food, party bags and I feel like I struggle to get it under £270 with a cake (I can't bake!). Looking at offers. She doesn't want a playcentre party

Around £300 but always felt guilty!

I get really stressed- who to invite, not wanting to leave anyone out, what to put in party bags, etc and trying to keep costs down without it looking cheap!

About £40-50

I can understand not wanting a playcentre party, though I think that's the cheapest option for that many children. I can bake, which brings the cost of the cake down - decoration isn't my forte (though the cake tastes good) but DD doesn't seem to mind.

Having looked into options where I am, a hall would be about £50, and an entertainer a minimum of £120 (and quite possibly more), so by the time you've got a cake, food and party bags, I don't think £270 is ridiculous. The only way you'll get it significantly cheaper is by reducing the number of guests, especially if that means you can host at home.

DS & 4 friends bowling and then KFC (classy!). €15 a head.
No one has had a whole class party since 5th birthday.

DS is a December child, so €250+ Christmas on top = bankrupt!

I never did or do parties for more than 10. The cost plus presents just gets silly. DD is 10 now and can't even really remember the parties she had before she was 8, or just has a vague recollection.

I think if I tried to reduce the numbers, we would end up doing something extra another day with the ones we felt probably should have come. There are 4-6 children who we would invite who are not necessarily on my child's list but are our friends children and would feel guilty not inviting them

Hmmm let’s see, entertainer £200. Hall hire £50 -£75. Food - no clue really £40? Party bags - £80 minimum. Balloons/ decorations/ table wear. £30 ( a complete guess as I buy re usable items where possible)... so easily £400. So this is why for my DDs last birthday she did a craft of her choice at a venue and I took them all for nice burgers after ( about 8 of them). No clearing up after either - result.

Around 200 with everything but the cake. We did a Forest school one, I think it was £15/head.

Based on where DD was invited to at that age I assume it was the average.

The cheapest we did was hiring a hall and doing arts & craft with 6 girls. But it was too much self-organising for me to ever doing it again.

Every year I always say we'll go smaller. 20 is less than the 30 last year.

If you're hellbent on inviting that number, do a McDonald's party, it will save you a fortune, or a cinema party for the Saturday morning film, then a burger afterwards.

I mean if you've got the money, don't stress and just go all out. If this is a struggle for you financially, as that kind of money would be for most people, then cut down numbers or do something cheaper.

Does anyone else have 20 children for parties 7years plus?

No one here does big parties past aged 5.
DD1 is 6 next month and I’m doing a party for her at home. 6 friends, we’re doing crafts, biscuit decorating, glitter tattoos, hair chalk, face painting and some games. Including party bags I think it’s cost about £90.
We did a party for 30 last year. Hall with bouncy castle/obstacle courses set up, craft table in the corner, music and games and it cost £160 including party bags.

We just did a 6th birthday for DD.

It was about £135 for the entertainer
£110 for the village hall
£60 for party bags and contents
£70 odd for food

My DF bought all the balloons and decs so not sure how much they all were but I couldn't believe how much we ended up spending.

Venue hire is cheap around here though. £30 for the village hall or £70 for the local community college which includes the bouncy castle/obstacle course/gym equipment.

I think it's unusual to have so many for a 7th birthday. Fewer kids but more spent per head is the norm with my kids friends.

Approx 200 but there’s usually just a church hall hired with a bouncy castle and a bunch of crafty or traditional party activities like pass the parcel / musical chairs etc. Food is usually pizza ordered in from the local non-chain pizza delivery and the cake is from costco.

The numbers really started dropping down around year 5 for us, but I think about 20 is ok for 7 year olds. I actually want my DC to have a good sized group and not have only a few select ones invited as I'd rather pay for a few extra kids than have tears and friendships spoiled because I've said '6 kids maximum'.
Haven't hired an entertainer but have done food myself for prob about £40: jam sandwiches, crisps, cocktail sausages etc. Can't you get a big cake from Asda for under £20 that will serve your numbers? In my experience it doesn't have to be highest quality cake, it's all about the look of it..

There are 4-6 children who we would invite who are not necessarily on my child's list but are our friends children and would feel guilty not inviting them

My three best friends have multiple children around a similar age to mine, who my children are friendly with but not ‘close friends’ with. They have always been invited to our ‘big’ parties, and vice versa. However as they’ve got older (past 5), parties have got smaller and more ‘select’ and none of us have invited the others. No one is offended!
So for example DD1 invited them all to her very large 5th birthday party last year, but not to her smaller 6th birthday party this year. DD2 only had 12 friends to her party last year (‘build a bear’ type party) so only invited the two closest to her in age who she is genuinely friends with.
Between the 4 of us we have 12 children so it would be impossible to keep inviting everyone to every party!

My dd has massive parties in halls since 4 (now 7) Easily spend 400-500! Hall where i am is 75-100, party bags for 30 kids, entertainer for the full 2 hours is normally 200+ (can not cope without one for half the party, too many kids) plus all the food and decor (although I will admit we always go overboard with the decor as I enjoy it). But a helium canister alone will set you back £20! I will admit though that the big party is in part down to Living in a flat, so probably couldn’t even manage more than 4 at home. So we end up inviting a lot of kids we could have otherwise vitoed, just to fill the space in the hall

Wow . Id never spend that much. 10 people clip and climb would be about 200 including food wouldnt it???

Ive done movie and food for a smaller number too.

I once did a hall party and organised ot myself. Just over 100.

60£ for party bags!?!? What on earth is in them!?!?!? Thats close to what I spend on total!

About £500 - activity/entertainer, hall, food, party bags, drinks for parents, cake.

@NumberblockNo1 I didn't scrimp as was DD's first and only, frankly party but that was just a few bits from Amazon. Twenty kids, so £3 a bag? Plus the cost of the cake?