Avast me hearties! I’m here to tell you about the amazing benefits of throwing a themed party for your child’s birthday – and not just any themed party. Forget princesses, Spiderman or dinosaurs; pirate is the way to go, and I’m going to explain how you can throw the best pirate-themed party that will have your child and all of their friends swash-buckling for weeks afterwards!

The brilliant thing about the pirate theme is that it’s accessible to both boys and girls. There’s no pink-and-blue division here – everyone can come dressed equal and enjoy the same games, characters and decorations. Tell gender to walk the plank and have a non-prejudiced party for your son or daughter!

So what do you need to do to achieve the perfect pirate party?

Decorate: You basically need to transform your house into a pirate ship – no big deal, right? It’s easier than it sounds! Make a few skull and crossbones out of painted cardboard to hang above the front door so parents find the right house (click here to find out how to make one!) while finding a Jolly Rodger to hang in the hall! A treasure chest can easily be created out of a picnic basket or sewing box, and by wrapping a few of your child’s building blocks in gold and silver paper, you can create bars of gold and silver. A few plastic jewels dotted around the place and swash buckles will all help to create the right effect.

Games: At some point after the children have all arrived, compared costumes, and got their temper tantrums out of the way, it’s time to play some pirate themed games. Obviously a treasure hunt always goes down a treat. Create a treasure map out of a sheet of A4 paper – by staining it brown with a teabag and making jagged cuts along the edges, you can create an old look. Give the kids clues to lead them around the house and ‘bury’ some treasure for them to find – and we all know a child’s greatest treasure is chocolatey treats! You could also play games to decide who talks the best pirate language – this website’s great if you want to brush up on your arrrghhh’s: www.piratetreasurenow.com/pirate-phrases.htm

Food: Speaking of edible treats, you need to think about what food you’re going to supply. Obviously pirates weren’t known for their culinary finesse so you’re going to have to improvise on this – rename a lot of ordinary food to become pirate food – chicken drumsticks can be seagulls’ legs, while Scotch eggs can be barnacles – that kind of thing. You can also opt for a few different pirate-themed food accessories to hype up the pirate theme – companies like Party Care supply candles, cupcake holders and cake trays all bearing pirate faces and patterns. Check out their website: www.partycare.co.uk/birthday-cake-decorations.html

Once you have these three things sorted, the only thing left to do is to find the right costume for you and your child. You could do the home-made version – a belted t-shirt with cut-off pyjama bottoms. Or you and your partner could go the whole hog and order fancy dress, which let’s face it is more impressive. Websites like Bryony Theatrical have a wide range of pirate fancy-dress, from Captain Hook to Jack Sparrow: www.bryonytheatrical.co.uk. Once you’re costumed and everything’s in place, there’s only one thing to do – hoist the flag!