Hosting a children's tea party can be great fun and allows you to be creative with the food as well as the decorations. We wanted to share with you some of our food ideas for a Mini Wells Vintage Tea Party.

For the younger child's afternoon tea party, we recommend keeping the food simple. Don't panic, this doesn't make it any less "wow". Here are our top tips ...

1. Make the food bright and exciting.

2. Sandwiches look great when they are cut into shapes (our favourites are mini heart shaped jam sandwiches).

3. Provide a few different mini cakes so that each child can have more than one (just like a grown up afternoon tea).

4. Mini scones are lovely but we definitely recommend pre-filling them. Young children (however neat and tidy) with dishes of jam and cream can, and probably will get very messy!

5. Fill small glass dishes with strawberries and blueberries. Not only are they healthy but they look extremly pretty.

6. Try to avoid putting bowls of crisps on the table. You will be amazed that nobody will miss them!

5. My daughter (age 5) says that jammy dodgers are an absolute must at all good afternoon tea parties. We'll let you make your minds up on that one ...

Example menu:

Fruit cordial served in teapots

Heart shaped sandwiches (keep it simple with jam, ham and cheese)

Mini sausage rolls

Mini cupcakes

Mini chocolate cornflake cakes

Marshmallow ballerinas

Jammy dodgers (up to you!!)

Fresh strawberries & blueberries

For an older child's afternoon tea party, the decorations and food can be more sophisticated and indulgent. Add a hint of 1920s to the styling and give it some glamour. Some of out top tips are ...

1. If you want to serve hot drinls and prefer to avoid tea then hot chocolate is a great option. Add mini marshmallows served in sugar bowls (with sugar tongs for added effect). Other great caffeine free hot drinks are herbal and fruit teas.

2. Mini bagels make a great alternative to finger sandwiches and you can be really inventive with the fillings.

3. Mini savoury pastries are a lovely addition to sandwiches.

4. To give the kids a real afternoon tea experience, serve mini scones with jam and cream in glass dishes.

5. Mini cakes should be indulgent (make it a real treat for them) and there should be a few types for them to try.

6. A couple of glass dishes filled with strawberries & blueberries won't look out of place and will help dilute the chocolate and other sweet treats (a bit!).

7. To complete their experience, older children will enjoy having a cake fork and butter knife to eat their food with.

Example menu:

Hot chocolate served in teapots

Mini marshmallows in sugar bowls, serve with sugar tongs

Mini bagels with cream cheese and cucumber

Mini bagels with humous & grated carrot

Finger sandwiches with smoked salmon & lemon butter

Mini pesto palmiers

Mini scones with strawberry jam & cream

Mini dark chocolate cupcakes

Rocky road bites

Strawberry & chocolate brownie bites

Fresh strawberries & blueberries

We hope that you and your little ones enjoy creating wonderful afternoon teas! We would love to see photos and hear all about your menu ideas ...