The office Christmas party is coming home. More teams are skipping the pricey hotel function room and pushing the desks back instead: a few drinks, a buffet, a playlist and the people you’ve spent all year with.
It’s a lovely way to celebrate. But an in-office do has a habit of leaving a familiar scene behind on Monday morning: bin bags bursting with paper plates, plastic cups, foil trays, tinsel and the odd deflated balloon under a desk.
It doesn’t have to be that way. With a bit of planning (and a box of reusables) your office party can be just as festive, far less wasteful, and a lot easier to clear up. Here’s how.
Why the office is already a good start
Hosting in your own space is a quietly green choice. Nobody needs to drive or taxi somewhere new, and the building is already heated and lit. You also have something a hired venue rarely offers: a kitchen, a dishwasher and a sink. That makes reusables a genuinely practical option, not just a worthy one.
It’s good for business too. Staff, clients and partners increasingly notice whether a company’s values show up in what it actually does. A party that doesn’t end in a skip full of single-use plastic is a small, visible way to walk the talk.
Tableware: hire it, use it, send it back
The single biggest source of party waste is what we eat and drink from. Even “eco” disposables have to go somewhere, and many so-called compostables only break down in industrial facilities your office bin will never reach.
The simplest answer is not to buy disposables at all. Our Plastic Free Party kits give you reusable plates, cups and more for your event. You use them, give them a rinse, pack them back in the box and return them. No bin bags, no last-minute supermarket dash for paper plates, and nothing heading to landfill.
See more information – click here
Decorations that come out again next year
Tinsel sheds microplastics, foil banners rarely survive the take-down, and balloons are best left out altogether. Fabric bunting and a proper tablecloth instantly make a meeting room feel like a party, and they fold away for next time. Our kits include both, so you can dress the room and return the lot.
For a festive finish, bring the outdoors in:
- Foraged greenery, holly and ivy along windowsills and desks
- Dried orange slices, pine cones and cinnamon sticks
- Paper chains made by the team (a surprisingly good ice-breaker)
- Warm white LED fairy lights you already own
When the party’s over, the greenery goes in the compost and the bunting goes back in the box.
Food and drink without the packaging mountain
An office buffet often arrives in a tower of plastic platters and cling film. When you book a caterer, use a local independent, ask them to deliver on reusable platters or in returnable containers, or to bring food on trays you can serve straight from. Using an independent caterer: shorter supply chains, seasonal produce and money staying in the community.
A few more easy wins:
- Do a proper headcount first. Fewer leftovers, smaller bill.
- Go heavier on plant-based dishes. Mince pies, mezze, veggie sausage rolls and a good cheese board rarely go uneaten.
- Serve drinks from bottles, kegs or jugs into reusable cups, rather than buying cans and plastic-wrapped multipacks.
- Have tubs ready so people can take leftovers home.
Games, crackers and Secret Santa
Christmas crackers are the classic culprit: a plastic toy, a paper hat and a joke, all binned within minutes. Look for plastic-free crackers, or make your own and fill them with something people will keep. A Christmas quiz, a festive bake-off or a team-made playlist costs nothing and creates no waste.
Secret Santa can easily become a swap of novelty tat. Set a simple theme to steer it:
- Secondhand or preloved only
- Something edible or drinkable from a local maker
- An experience or a voucher for a local business
- A donation to a charity the recipient cares about
Wrap in brown paper, fabric (furoshiki style) or reused paper, and skip the sticky tape and glitter.
The morning after
This is where most good intentions fall apart, so plan it before the first glass is poured.
- Set up clearly labelled bins for recycling, food waste and general waste, and put them where people actually stand.
- Have a spot for used plates and cups to go straight back, so they don’t end up in the bin by mistake.
- Give the reusables a quick wash (or a dishwasher run), pack them back in the box and arrange the return.
- Donate any unopened food or drink to a local food bank or community fridge.
- Fold the bunting and tablecloths away, ready to go back to us for the next party.
Ask for two or three volunteers for the clear-up. With reusables, it’s a quick tidy rather than an afternoon of bin bags.
Book your office party kit
Planning a Christmas do in the office this year? Let us take the plates, cups, tablecloths and bunting off your to-do list. Our reusable party kits are delivered ready to go and simply returned afterwards, so your team can enjoy the celebration without the waste.
[Add: link to the Plastic Free Party shop, booking deadline for December dates, and contact details.]Book early: December dates go fast.
