Cash The Party

With celebrities flaunting their lavish parties, parents are feeling the pressure to host a party that’s up to scratch...

- Rossie Crass

Gone are the days of pass the parcel, a supermarket bought a birthday cake and jam sandwiches.

Now, children’s birthday parties are bigger and more extravagant than ever before.

Mum’s are hiring party planners, buying bespoke cakes and setting up balloon archways for their little one’s special day and the cost can often be eyewatering.

For some parents, it’s not just about the kid’s, but instead, a way to impress other parents, with one in seven said to splash out on expensive parties to outdo other mums and dads.

On average, parents spend £19k on their children’s parties over the course of their lifetime and with social media influencers and celebrities often flaunting their kid’s extravagant parties, is there any wonder parents are feeling pressured to host a party that is up to scratch?

The latest craze in kid’s parties is the luxury sleepover party package, with Tess Daly and Rochelle Humes both hiring party planners to organise their daughter’s special day.

Party planners provide teepee’s, blow up beds and adorn your living room with fairy lights and sparkly accessories to create the perfect Instagram worthy look.

They take care of everything and can create spa packages, bespoke party bags, doughnut walls and dessert tables.

Prices vary depending on what parents are after and the result is often shared across social media for other parents to see and judge.

Christina Kendall co-owns Ripple Events, a party planning company that specialises in planning sleepover parties.

She’s seen a huge rise in the demand for these kinds of parties.

She said, ‘Sleepover parties are huge and growing by the minute.

‘Parents prefer to have a small group of children at home with a stress-free setup and pick up.