Planning a work Christmas party: timeline and checklist

When should you book a work Christmas party?

Book the venue 2 to 3 months ahead, and 3 to 4 months ahead for a Thursday or Friday in the first three weeks of December in a big city, when the best rooms go first. Settle the budget and the date before anything else, because they decide everything after.

How timing differs in Australia, the UK and the US

• Australia: the end of year party is the last big gathering before the summer holidays. Many workplaces close between Christmas and New Year and plenty of people take leave from mid December, so late November and the first two weeks of December book out first.
• The UK: December is party season, and Thursdays and Fridays go fastest. The last Friday before Christmas, known in parts of the UK as Mad Friday, means packed pubs and long waits for taxis.
• The US: many teams avoid Thanksgiving week at the end of November and hold the holiday party in the first half of December.

What goes on a work Christmas party checklist?

Everything that keeps people fed, included, safe and able to get home.

The essentials

• Budget approved, and what it covers.
• Venue booked, with a contract and a named contact on the night.
• Food served right through the party.
• Drinks: what’s included, the bar tab or limit, and alcohol-free choices.

People

• Dietary requirements collected, and passed to the caterer.
• Access needs asked about, and the venue checked in person.
• Remote, part-time and shift workers included.
• Someone looking after new people and those from small teams.

Safety

• A friendly reminder that the usual standards of behaviour apply.
• First aid, and the venue’s emergency plan.

When should invitations go out for a work Christmas party?

Send invitations 4 to 6 weeks before the party, with a reply-by date 2 to 3 weeks before. That leaves a week or two to follow up late replies before the venue needs final numbers.

Say clearly when it begins and ends, where, what to wear, whether partners are invited, what’s provided and how people get home. Ask for dietary and access needs in the reply, so they’re answered once and privately. For more wording, see Christmas party invitation wording.

How do you make a work Christmas party inclusive?

Think of the whole team: people who don’t celebrate Christmas or don’t drink, parents and carers, people with disabilities, and people who work shifts or remotely.

• Name it for everyone. “End of year party” or “holiday party” welcomes colleagues who don’t celebrate Christmas. The tree and the crackers can stay.
• Check the date. Avoid clashes with religious observances such as Hanukkah, whose dates move each year, and remember some colleagues keep a sabbath from Friday evening.
• Make drinking optional, never the point. People skip alcohol for faith, health, pregnancy or the drive home; make the alcohol-free drinks as good as the cocktails.
• Food for every diet. Label the dishes, and include vegetarian, halal or kosher choices where your team needs them.
• Choose a time people can come. A lunch suits parents, carers and long commutes; an evening party should be optional.
• Keep the extras optional. Karaoke, costumes and Secret Santa are for the willing.

Accessibility

• Step-free entry and an accessible toilet, checked in person.
• Seats for anyone who can’t stand all night.
• Music low enough to talk over, and a quieter space to step away to.
• Ask what people need in the reply, then sort it quietly.

How should you handle alcohol at a work party?

Serve it responsibly, serve food the whole time, and give the bar a closing time. A party your employer organises is generally treated as a work event in Australia, the UK and the US, so the usual responsibilities for safety and behaviour still apply. Check your own policies, and take advice if you’re unsure.

• Use a licensed venue or professional bar staff. In Australia, staff serving alcohol in licensed venues need responsible service of alcohol (RSA) training; in the UK and the US, licensing rules differ by nation and by state.
• Set a bar tab or a limit, or hand out drink tokens, and say when the free bar closes.
• Food right through the night, not only canapés at six.
• Water on every table, and alcohol-free drinks worth choosing.
• No shots or drinking games on the company’s tab.
• Two or three people on duty who stay sober, know the plan and can make decisions.

How will everyone get home?

Decide before the night, not at the door. Finish before the last train, book a shuttle for an out-of-town venue, or offer taxi vouchers or rideshare credit, and put the plan on the invitation so nobody has to ask. Nobody drives after drinking, and anyone leaving alone should have a way home.

How much should you budget per head?

There’s no standard amount; it depends on your city, your venue and what your business can afford. Budget per head, and include everything: food, drinks, venue hire or minimum spend, staff, entertainment, decorations, transport and a little for the unexpected.

Ask venues for per-head packages (food and drinks for a set time) and the minimum spend on a private room. A lunch usually costs less than a dinner, and a weeknight less than a Friday.

Tax rules for staff parties differ by country and change from time to time. In the UK, HMRC’s annual event exemption covers up to £150 a head a year, including VAT, for a party open to all staff. In Australia, fringe benefits tax depends on the cost per head, where the party is held and who attends. In the US, staff parties have their own deduction rules. Check with your accountant before you set the budget.

Should partners be invited to the work Christmas party?

It’s your call, and either works as long as the invitation says so clearly. A staff-only party costs less and feels like a team celebration; inviting partners helps new people feel at ease and thanks the people at home for a long year.

• If partners are welcome, budget for them, and ask for their names and dietary needs in the reply.
• If it’s staff only, say so warmly rather than with a blunt “no plus ones”.
• Keep one rule for everyone, managers included.

How do you include remote teams in a Christmas party?

Bring them in, or bring the party to them. Fly or drive people in if the budget allows; if not, hold a short online celebration at a time that suits every time zone, and send something to each person’s door.

• Keep it short. An hour online is plenty: a welcome, a quiz or game, a thank-you and a toast.
• Send the party. A box of treats, or a voucher for food delivery, timed to arrive before the call.
• Draw Secret Santa online, and open the gifts together on camera.
• Give a hybrid party two hosts: one in the room watching the screen, one online drawing people in.
• Mind the clocks. In December, 6pm on a Friday in Sydney is 7am in London and 11pm on Thursday in Los Angeles.

What does a Christmas party run sheet look like?

A run sheet is the party’s timetable: what happens, when, and who looks after it. Share it with the venue, the MC and the people on duty.

What should organisers do about the after-party?

Make the official end clear, and let any after-party be what it is: people choosing to keep going, on their own time and their own money. Close the company tab when the official party ends, and don’t organise or pay for the next venue: an after-party on the company’s tab can look like part of the work event.

• Say the finish time on the invitation and on the night: “The bar closes at 10pm, and the last shuttle leaves at 10:30pm.”
• Managers set the tone. Heading home at the official end is a kindness, not a snub.

The day after

• Thank everyone, the venue and the people who helped.
• Gather lost property, and share photos only where people are happy to be in them.
• Deal with any concerns promptly and privately, through the usual channels.
• Ask a few people what to keep and what to change, while it’s fresh.

Inviting your team with Wonderful Invites

With Wonderful Invites, your party’s own name leads the invitation, so it can be the Northside Health End of Year Party as easily as a Christmas party. Each person gets their own link, taps the seal to open it and replies from the invitation. You see who has opened it and every reply, and you can send a reminder only to those who haven’t answered. Basic covers up to 299 guests, and VIP up to 1,000.

Good to know holds the dress code, the food and drinks and any notes, such as how everyone gets home, beside a countdown, a map and “Add to your calendar”. Secret Santa is built in, with your spending limit, and each person sees only their own match. If the room or the finish time changes, change it once: everyone sees the latest version on the same link.

Questions people also ask