The Average British Child’s Birthday Party Costs Over £320

A new study from the UK’s leading money-saving brand has revealed that over two thirds of British parents throw their children a birthday party every single year. According to the results, the average birthday party costs £320.50, with a further £175.80 on average then spent on birthday presents.

According to the research, the average parent of a primary school aged child spends almost £500 on them, split between a party and presents, to celebrate their birthday. Furthermore, two thirds of UK parents throw parties for their children every single year.

The team at vouchercloud undertook the study as part of ongoing research into the amount of money that gets spent on British children. 2,104 Brits aged 18 and over, all of whom stated they had a child between the ages of 4 and 10 years old, were all quizzed about the amount of money that they spend on their children.

Initially, all respondents were asked ‘Do you typically throw a birthday party for your child every year?’ to which almost two thirds of respondents, 65%, stated ‘yes’. All of those who stated yes were asked why, with the most common responses being ‘my child loves parties’ (88%), ‘my child asks to have a party’ (44%) and ‘it means my child gets more presents’ (38%). Similarly, all of those who stated that they didn’t throw a birthday party for their child every year were asked why, with most parents confessing that annual parties are ‘too much organisation to take on every year’ (47%) and that they ‘can’t afford the expense’ (41%).

Wanting to delve a little deeper, all respondents were asked to state which they felt was the most expensive aspect of the party. When provided with a list of possible responses and told to select the one that they felt was the most expensive for the parties that they had arranged for their children, the top five results were as follows:

1. Entertainment - 21%

2. Catering - 19%

3. Decorations - 16%

4. Party bags - 14%

5. Venue hire - 9%

Furthermore, all respondents were then asked to state roughly how much the children’s parties cost on average, whether they held them annually or just when able to, and told to take into account all aspects including entertainment, catering, venue hire and so on. Once all of the responses were collated, the results showed that the average British parent spends £320.50 per birthday party for their primary school aged child.

Similarly, all parents were then asked to state roughly how much they spent on purchasing birthday presents for their child. Once all of the responses were collated, the results showed that the average parents spend £175.80 on birthday gifts per child. When adding this to the cost of the party, this equates to a total birthday spend of £496.30.

According to the poll, 71% of respondents admit that they usually plan to cut back on costs next year but, of these, 81% confess they rarely stick to this as they want their child to have the best party of the year compared to their friends. Heading to our baby & child vouchers page is a great way of getting party supplies and presents for less.

Chris Johnson, Head of Operations at vouchercloud.com, commented:

“Children between 4 and 10 years old are far too young to appreciate the value of money, never mind the gesture that’s being given, and we’d even go so far as suggesting there could well be an ulterior motive of competing with other parents from the schoolyard. Children so young don’t need the best of everything – you can host a party at home, invite a few of their closest friends and put together some simple partygames; they’d have just as much of a good time!

“That being said, for all of those who are happy to spend a little money on a party, it’s worth looking out for a good deal; don’t be afraid to haggle with the entertainment or the catering, ask for a discount if you’ve used them before or recommended them to others and obviously don’t forget to shop around to ensure you’re not only getting the highest quality, but the best deal.”