21 Alternative Work Social Ideas in London - No Work and All Play
Most of us spend around 40 hours a week with our colleagues. Love them or hate them, we’re stuck with them, so we might as well try to get along – at least until we get fired or win the lottery. Traditionally we’d recommend a good party game to bring people together, but there are plenty of other corporate party ideas to try out. Here’s a couple to get you started.
1. Axe Throwing
Looking for a work social idea in London with an edge? Head over to Whistle Punks, gather all that pent-up office anger and let it out by throwing axes at things. Not only is it easier than it sounds, but you’ll also have a lumberjack-looking professional at your side the whole time to teach you secret techniques, organise tournaments and stop any duels from breaking out.
From £22 per person
Arch 25, Handel Business Centre, 73 Bondway, London SW8 1SQ
2. Shuffleboard
Board games had a revival, vinyl made a comeback – it was only a matter of time until shuffleboard had its moment in the sun. If you’re looking for a work social idea with less axes, look no further. Right in the heart of Shoreditch is the UK’s first floor-based shuffleboard club, with pizza, beers and cocktails available on site.
From £20 per person
https://www.londonshuffle.com/floor
4 Ebor St, Shoreditch, London E1 6AW
3. Big Night In – Hosted Party Games
Turn your work social night out into a work night in with Big Potato Games. Armed with a massive collection of party games, highly-trained game gurus and more free prizes than you could shake a stick at, the Big Potato team can bring the party right to your doorstep and are equipped to take on any challenge – from work socials to Christmas do’s, group bonding activities to birthdays.
From £22+VAT pp for events in London
https://bigpotato.com/gb/Big-Night-In
Address: anywhere you like!
Quote ‘blogpost’ when enquiring to nab yourself a free game and potato plushie when your booking goes through.
4. Sweet Making Workshop
Nothing says team building like making an edible version of your co-workers face. For a slightly sweeter work night out idea, head over to Spitalfields and master the art of lollipop making, chocolate flower arranging and candy face eating.
£60 per person
https://www.spun-candy.com/masterclasses/
London Spitalfields, 58 Wentworth Street, London, E1 7AL
5. Bounce
A work social idea to conquer your fears of the office ping pong table and become an absolute pro overnight. Recent winners of the COOL VENUE award and famous for their team building activities, Bounce offers everything you’d ever want in a ping pong bar – comedian referees, fancy cocktails, and bright neon lights to distract everyone from how bad your serve is.
https://www.bouncepingpong.com/team-building/
121 Holborn, London, EC1N 2TD
241 Old Street, London, EC1V 9EY
6. German Beer Hall
This one really doesn’t need much explaining does it. If you’re not sure what to say to your colleagues outside of the workplace, head to a traditional Bierhall and drink until the words come to you. Expect beer, sausages, pretzels, more beer and a traditional German oompah band pumping out all the classics.
The Hop Exchange, 24 Southwark Street, London SE1 1TY
7. Swingers
According to the Telegraph, golf was recently named the most boring sport by the British public. However, the British public clearly never came to Swingers because it’s absolutely mental. Pick out a club and smash through courses with ferris wheels, lighthouses and loop-de-loops before moving onto some first class food (Patty & Bun, Breddos Tacos, Pizza Pilgrims… you get the idea).
From £50 per person
8 Brown’s Buldings, London, EC3A 8AL
15 John Prince’s Street, London, WIG OAB
8. Make Your Own Gin
Kickstart your work social night out by learning all about the wonders of gin – and getting pretty tipsy while you’re at it. Upon entry, you’ll be handed a bunch of free drinks from a certified gin instructor, before moving onto a masterclass on botanicals and brewing. Your team will then work together to create their own brand of gin, with each party member taking a bottle home as a souvenir.
£60 per person
The Distillery, 186 Portobello Road, London W11 1LA
9. Flight Club
You thought that darts was reserved for overweight blokes at the corner of the pub? Welcome to the future of the sport, complete with digital score boards, incredible food and lots of alcohol (some parts just don’t change). Offering a socially acceptable alternative to axe-throwing, Flight Club has venues all over London from Shoreditch to Bloomsbury to Victoria.
£35 per person
https://flightclubdarts.com/london/
Flight Club Bloomsbury, 55 New Oxford Street, London WC1A 1BS
Flight Club Shoreditch, 2a Worship Street, London EC2A 2AH
Flight Club Victoria, 6 Sir Simon Milton Square, London SW1E 5DJ
10. VR Team Building
Can’t imagine a situation where you’d enjoy group bonding activities with your colleagues? Well, maybe these guys can fix that by changing reality altogether. In the virtual world, you can work together to diffuse bombs, escape traps and become wizards. Everything you need is bought straight to your office, along with a trained technician, so all the hard work is done for you. (Apart from all the bomb diffusing.)
https://www.virtualrealityexp.co.uk/vr-team-building
Address: anywhere you like!
11. Have a Ceilidh
Loosen up your work team with a little Scottish spirit at a traditional Ceilidh dance lesson, complete with a full band and team of dancers to get the party started. These guys have put on corporate events for all sorts of big-shots, such as Apple, National Geographic and Vodafone, so you know you’re dancing with a pair of safe hands.
https://www.licencetoceilidh.co.uk/your-corporate-ceilidh
Location varies – contact using the link above.
12. The Four Quarters Pub
If futuristic video games with confusing names aren’t your cup of tea, you can always bring it back to basics with the similar-sounding Four Quarters in Peckham (& Hackney Wick), crammed with old-school arcade games dating back to the ‘80s. If you’ve got any inter-departmental squabbles to sort in the office, you can’t do much better than a Street Fighter showdown.
http://geocities.fourquartersbar.co.uk/
187 Rye Ln, London SE15 4TP
8, Canalside, Queen Elisabeth Olympic Park, E Bay Ln, London E20 3BS
13. Candle Making Classes
Its official: fancy-smelling candles are in. Grab your colleagues and learn all about each other’s signature scent as you study the science of smells, melt a bunch of wax and create a candle that best represents you. It’s a nice, chilled work social idea, different to a lot of the more boozy activities on the list, and it’s sure to get the office smelling a lot nicer for a few weeks.
£50 per person
https://londonrefinery.co.uk/pages/private-candle-making-events
Address: anywhere you like!
14. Ball Pits for Grown-Ups
Scientists have recently discovered that it’s impossible to not have fun in a ball pit, no matter what age you are. Throw some swings, disco lights and Willy Wonka-themed alcohol into the equation and you’ve got all the ingredients you need for a great work social idea.
https://www.ballieballerson.com/private-hire/
Address: anywhere you like!
15. Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium
You know what’s great for a work team outing? Afternoon tea. You know what’s even better? Afternoon tea surrounded by fluffy cats. Based in Shoreditch, Lady Dinah’s has become a bit of a cult café (in a good way), with people booking weeks ahead to lock in some kitten therapy. Check it out for yourself and find out why.
152-154 Bethnal Green Road London E2 6DG
16. Zombie Laser Tag
The end of the world seems pretty inevitable these days, so better get some practice in. Team up with your colleagues and take on an army of real life-ish zombies as they chase you through an underground bunker. There’s laser quest, paintballing or even airsofting to choose from – depending on how aggressive you’re feeling.
£50 per person
https://www.ultimaterecreation.co.uk/bunker51/zombie-laser-tag.asp
Bunker 51, 3 Herringham Road, North Greenwich, London SE7 8NJ
17. The Four Thieves Pub
How do you make a staff night out to the pub even better? You absolutely jam-pack it with arcade games. Also this isn’t just any arcade – there are some games here that we’ve never heard of (and we’re a games company). From ‘Moonshine Racing’ to ‘Immersive Escape Rooms’, the pub also hosts a weekly comedy night, so you can get some laughs in between rounds of ‘Plonk’ – whatever that is.
https://www.fourthieves.pub/corporatepackages/
51 Lavendar Gardens, Battersea, London SW11 1DJ
18. Trampoline Park
Leave your troubles on the ground as you bounce around a three-floor trampoline madhouse. Complete with massive slides, laser mazes and slushies, this is probably one of the only corporate party ideas where you can challenge your boss to a gladiator face-off and get away with it.
£40 per person
https://www.flipout.co.uk/locations/london-e6/
Flip Out London E6, 281 Barking Road, London E6 1LB
19. Make Fancy Biscuits
Take your staff on a team building activity that adds another line to their CV as you become biscuit-making masters in just two hours. Based in Northcote and Notting Hill, you’ll be taught the best ways to bake, ice and eat your biscuits – and if that wasn’t tempting enough, you’ll get a free apron to take home with you at the end.
£95 per person
https://www.biscuiteers.com/boutique-icing-cafe/private-icing-parties
94 Kensington Park Road, London, W11 2ES
3 Northcote Road, London, SW11 1NG
20. Hip Hop Karaoke
Karaoke is the top dog when it comes to corporate nights out in London, but there’s no shame in shaking it up a little. Take a break from belting out Oasis and become a hip hop star instead. With over 200+ tracks to choose from, you’ll have everything you need to be the biggest and baddest singer around (in a good way).
http://www.hiphopkaraoke.co.uk/contact-bookings/
Queen Of Hoxton, 1 Curtain Rd, London EC2A 3JX
21. Kidzania
What’s that in the sky? Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, its Keith from accounting pretending to be an astronaut. Kidzania is an indoor wonderland where your work team can get a career makeover for the day. Whether it means serving lattes in a café or taking off in a rocket ship, this is the perfect work social idea for letting loose and running wild. Just be careful it doesn’t encourage any of your staff to quit their job and become a wrestler – it has been known to happen.
https://kidzania.co.uk/visit-us/private-hire
KidZania London, Westfield London, Ariel Way, W12 7GA
