25 August 2020

Updated: May 2024

Work Social Event Ideas Your Team Will Actually Enjoy

Whether you’re looking for social work team-building activities, or it’s coming up to Christmas and you are planning your annual party, thinking of work social event ideas can be challenging. You have to try and find something that the whole team will enjoy, and this can be stressful.

Luckily for you, we’ve been host to a whole array of corporate social events so we’ve compiled a list of work social activities that will get your team excited and ease the stress of planning a corporate social event.

Corporate team-building events and social away days are an essential part of any company’s overall health but thinking of the ideas can be difficult!

Taking a break from the office and getting your employees to interact with each other in a relaxed and fun environment is vital for employee engagement, communication and productivity. A highly engaged team shows 21% greater profitability, so having a great employee engagement strategy is vital for your business’ success.

There are so many activities you can choose from for your work social event ideas and finding something that all employees will love doesn’t have to be difficult. At Yarnfield Park, we have hosted a range of work social events and have seen everything from annual awards nights, team-building days out, and even epic gala dinners. Our events venue is based in Staffordshire, so if you are looking for a friendly and welcoming place to host your work social events, get in touch!

Board Game Tournament

Fun, creative, and challenging. The first on our list of ideas for work socials is an epic board game tournament. Everyone in the office will have a board game that they love, whether it’s a childhood classic such as Monopoly or a modern twist on Cluedo.

Ask each employee to bring in their game of choice and set up board game stations. Each department can participate, and you can even team up and make it a competition. This is a great way to stimulate employees’ brains, encourage light competitiveness, and get the whole team together. Opt to host in the office and order a buffet lunch or hire out a function room at a local venue and get an all-inclusive package that includes lunch, coffee, and light bites.

Why not support a local business, with a number of board game cafes popping up, they’ll be able to recommend games no one has heard of before and will have various amenities for a fun afternoon out of the office without plenty of additional planning.

Scavenger Hunt

A classic that never gets old! Scavenger hunts are awesome and get the whole team active. This will involve some prep beforehand but will most definitely be worth it. Scavenger hunts can vary, and you should incorporate a range of different activities such as trivia challenges and local treasure hunts.

This is a great daytime corporate activity and will help with team bonding. It’s perfect for summer work social ideas as more often than not it involves being outside. If you find yourself busy with your work project, then you can hire a company such as OffLimits who can offer fantastic team building activities and work social event ideas.

Work Sports Day

An easy work social event idea that encourages teamwork and getting active is a sports day! This is a great low-cost option for smaller businesses and promotes healthy competition and communication.

If you work in a traditional office, then your employees will spend most of their day sitting at a desk in front of an office, so getting outside for the day will be an exciting thought for the whole office, even if they don’t like playing sports!

Go to your local park and set up an area where you can play a range of quick games. This can include activities such as 5-a-side football, wheelbarrow races, and the classic egg and spoon race. Split your team in two and get some t-shirts printed for each team! The winning team can get a prize such as a half day’s holiday or a complimentary dinner somewhere fancy.

For larger companies, hiring an outdoor space in a country park or at an events venue with grounds might be more ideal to ensure everyone can access the day easily and have appropriate facilities, including toilets, catering and accommodation if your teams are remote.

Escape Rooms

Championing creativity, some logic and mind-bending riddles, escape rooms are a very popular work social event idea. There are so many fun-themed escape rooms available but if you don’t have one local to you, companies like OffLimits offer corporate escape room options including crystal quest activities based on the hit TV show.

Solve riddles and complete challenges within a set time to escape the room or complete the quest! You have to work together as a team and this social work event idea encourages creative thinking, co-worker relationships, and time management.

Go-Karting

Often a favourite among team members, this fun and thrilling activity will add a hint of competition to the day. Gear up and get the adrenaline pumping with an ultimate go-kart race.

This is a great corporate team-building day out and is relatively easy to plan. There are go-kart courses across the whole of the UK so there’s likely somewhere close by to try this fun social event idea.

You can also turn this into an evening event by going to your local pub for a few drinks afterwards which will allow everyone time to dissect each other’s racing strategies!

Office Bake-Off

Another favourite on our list of fun social event ideas takes inspiration from the TV classic, The Great British Bake-off. Get each member of staff to whip up a tasty treat and bring it into the office for your very own cook-off competition. Have a dedicated food table where each employee can place their delicious dish and get others to judge which will be the winner.

Try to plan beforehand so you have a range of sweet and savoury treats available. Once the winner has been chosen, you are left with a whole array of buffet food for the team to enjoy. If you want this to be an out-of-office event, then going to a park or open public field is always a great idea and you can turn the event into a picnic with games and bubbly.

Gala Ball

This is a corporate social event for a larger budget and is best suited for an occasion such as an awards dinner or your annual summer party. Hosting a gala ball at an event venue is a great way to reward your employees. You can also make this a themed event such as a black and white bow tie, murder mystery, or 1920’s Gatsby for an additional layer of fun and competition.

Movie Night

Perfect for a winter work social event, film-a-thons are a great way to chill and relax. Hire a projector screen, move all the desks to one side, and bring in bean bags, snacks, and all of your employee’s favourite films! Why not order some takeaway pizzas too?

For summer months, attend an outdoor cinema with picnic or snacks in tow.

This is a great way for your employees to enjoy a relaxed setting and watch their favourite film or even be introduced to a new film! This is a perfect work social activity as everyone can join in and spend time together.

Charity Fundraising Events

Always a great cause! Charity fundraising events are fun and you are doing some good. There are so many charitable events you can host, ranging from walks to charity balls, and organised events such as Tough Mudder.

Simply pick your charity and get raising! We’ve hosted charity events at our venue including conferences, dinners, and team-building charity days. We offer discounted rates for charities and work hard to tailor a package to your budget to make sure that you get what you need.

Not only does fundraising get employees working together for a good cause but a charity exercise event also promotes physical and health. Prioritising this type of event also indicates to your customers and teams that you value social responsibility, helping to strengthen your company values which will encourage employees to invest in you.

Thrill-Seekers

A great work social event idea is to organise something daring and adrenaline-pumping for your employees. Theme parks are always a good idea and everyone loves a good rollercoaster to get them screaming.

If you want to go all out and are a team of daredevils, then rewarding your employees with the opportunity to do a skydive or bungee jump will go down a treat. This is also perfect to turn into a charitable cause as well as being fun and adventurous. Once completed, you can all celebrate your bravery by going for some drinks or dinner and chat the night away about the awesome challenge you have just accomplished.

Art Workshops

Jumping out of a plane isn’t for everyone, so if you’re looking for something a little bit more relaxed and creative, why not attend and art workshop?

There are plenty of local events and businesses that you could attend, whether that’s a paint and sip event or pottery making and painting. No skill required, we promise, just follow your class teacher and you’ll be amazed at what you can create!

If you’re a smaller team, you could organise this by following a painting tutorial and get supplies and snacks for the team.

Quiz Night

We all know that the British weather can’t always be trusted, so why not opt for a quiz or trivia night? Whether you decide to attend your local pub quiz night or create a quiz to host within the office one afternoon, this is one of our favourite work social activities. Grab snacks and drinks for a fantastic, low cost event.

Mini Golf

No matter the weather, with indoor and outdoor mini golf options, you can get a little competitive with your putting! There are so many excellent themed crazy golf courses around, plus lunch or drinks after can make this a really fun afternoon work social event!

Work social events are vital for employee satisfaction and will massively benefit your company. Your staff work hard for your business and they should be rewarded for this, plus corporate social events can help with breaking the ice between remote team members, improving communication and ensuring cohesive working wherever possible. Employees need to feel as if their hard work is appreciated, or else they will start to look elsewhere or there will be a negative vibe in the office.

There are a range of ideas here for different budgets so we hope you’ve found something ideal for your team! If you’re ready to plan your next work social event, you might want to view some frequently asked questions.

What logistical considerations should be taken into account when planning these events?

One key thing to consider is where your team are based. Are they remote and if you offer hybrid working are you planning your social event for a day when people are in the office to make it easier to find a central location?

If your team is remote, do you need an activity and location with onsite accommodation or will you only host virtual events?

Does the event need to be held during the work day due to your external commitments from your team? If it will be held after work, do you need to give enough notice for people to work around their external commitments?

The best thing you can do in this situation is speak to your teams, what works for them and what sounds like a good team building activity? You can do this by asking for feedback anonymously or by asking people to respond to a group message/email.

How do you measure the success of these events in terms of employee engagement?

This will depend on the type of event you hold. There is a different between a company social event and a team building event, this doesn’t mean an event can’t be both but sometimes holding an event that is purely social can be beneficial!

It’s unlikely that you’ll see a clear change in working behaviour or communication about one event but if you can schedule in regular work social activities and team building days, you’ll start to see a positive increase in communication, efficiency and the strength of your team over time.

What are the best practices for ensuring inclusivity in these events?

Ask your teams what will work for them.

Are there any types of events they can’t take part in, can you make adjustments that allow them to join in on something that’s planned?
If your company events often focus around drinking alcohol, how does this affect those that don’t drink? Can you plan something that doesn’t involve going to the pub?
Do you also consider dietary requirements, physical restrictions or external commitments that might impact employees being able to join in?

Our best advice would be to schedule in your social events for a couple of months in advance or for the entire year. This allows teams to plan accordingly, ensuring they’re available and can plan work loads around team away days or afternoons out of the office. It also gives people something to look forward to and chat about.

Another benefit is being able to show the team that you take the social side of business seriously, as it’s important to your teams getting along and working together. As well as this, it shows that you’re trying to cater to everyone by respecting their time and showing a range of activities that can appeal to people over the year.

If you are interested in hosting your corporate team building day out or work social at our event venue, why not explore Yarnfield Park? Offering 41 event spaces with onsite accommodation, event packages and eco-conscious catering we’re experts in a range of corporate events at affordable prices for an array of businesses.

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Work Social Event Ideas Your Team Will Actually Enjoy