Firstly, good luck 😉 I could think of a hundred of different sineros I would rather than having ten or so kids running wild around my house!

When throwing a sustainable kids party, sticking to reduce, reuse and recycle is your best bet. Going eco-friendly doesn’t mean sacrificing the usual games or fun. Just be mindful when planning your prizes and games - “is this plastic necessary?” or “where will these knick knacks end up?” Is the ten seconds of fun really worth the hundreds (if not thousands) years it’ll take to break down? If you’re struggling to answer, just think of the poor turtles with straws up their noses 🐢 Bit dramatic, I know 😂 and yes I do realise that is a tortoise but I couldn’t find an emoji of a turtle! Don’t worry I’ve already sent an email to Tim Cook 😉

Pass the parcel is a childhood favourite and is guaranteed to keep the kids occupied for a little while ( or until one crys because the music didn’t stop on them 😂). Instead of using wrapping paper or tissue paper, why not reuse old newspapers that you have lying around the house? Or if you are looking for a brighter parcel, reuse old drawings and paintings your kids have done, layering different colour textiles I.e t-shirts & old bedding or even old travel maps. Instead of using tape to secure it, old twine and rope in an easy-to-untie bow around the parcel is nice, but if the kids are younger then you can grab some paper sticky tape which is a bio-degradable alternative.

It is easy to buy big bags of lollies and chocolates from the shops for party bags and game prizes, but there is so much unnecessary plastic with these options and reducing the consumption of them is important. A fun alternative to pop in your party bag is homemade play dough. There are plenty of simple how to’s on the internet, and it will be a great activity to get your child buzzing for the big day. Making little extra things such as origami animals from paper you have around the house can be a nice addition too. The paper crane is an easy one to begin with. I understand kids want sugar at a party, so if you’re going to include lollies go down to your closest pick’n’mix lolly store ( here in Perth, we have Coles and Pantry Man), this avoids those pesky plastic wrapping. I would recommend the lollies towards the end or even in the party bags so you don’t have to deal with the sugar come down tantrums!

When it comes to decorations, why not sew bunting from old linen that you have? These will last you years if you store them away properly. By using neutral colours it will mean that you can whip them out for any special occasion (well until one of the sugar-high kids wipe their dirty mint on them 🤣). The home-made decorations will impress everyone with your home-economics skills... well you’ll either impress them or have parents sipping chandon and snickering at your “masterpieces” 🥂

Whilst your doing the mountain of dishes (don’t let this put you off 😉) because you opted to use real plates and cutlery instead of plastic disposable ones, give yourself a pat on the back because you’ve thrown a great shindig with minimal environmental impact! It’ll be you snickering at the next kids party because the “karen” of parents group brought decorations and lollies wrapped in turtle killing plastic! I hope this blog has given you some ideas for your child’s birthday 🥳 Even if you implement one or two things suggested in this post, then good on you! Every little bit counts and hey, why stop at a sustainable kids party? Adopt these practises to your adult shindigs and celebrations too! Don’t forget – reduce, reuse and recycle.