For many leadership teams, the festive season brings a mix of excitement and anxiety.

You want to reward your team, but you can’t shake the worry that something could go wrong. One inappropriate comment, one blurred boundary, and suddenly you’re facing reputational damage or a legal headache.

A potent mix of alcohol, relaxed boundaries, and a party atmosphere can sometimes lead to inappropriate behaviour, which could include sexual harassment.

If you’ve already downloaded our sexual harassment prevention toolkit, then you’re probably feeling relaxed, excited even, about your upcoming party.

You know you can sit back and enjoy the festivities because everything is taken care of behind the scenes.

But if you’ve not thought about the consequences of bad behaviour and employer obligations outside of the workplace, then you could end up with reputational damage, legal risks, and the possibility of an uncomfortable complaint landing on their desk. No one wants to be the headline for the wrong reasons or spend January dealing with tribunal claims instead of planning for growth.

That’s why you need to keep reading.

By the end of this article, you’ll know what proactive steps you need to take to protect your people, your reputation, and your peace of mind without turning into the “fun police.”

Your Christmas party should be the highlight of your year

Yes, we’re going to talk about the pitfalls of the Christmas party, but we also want to highlight the positives.

Your team has worked hard all year.

A Christmas party is a chance to show your appreciation for everyone’s hard work and strengthen team bonds. It’s the one time you get to let your hair down and enjoy each other’s company in a social environment.

And while we don’t want to quote Spiderman, it’s true. With great power comes great responsibility.

If you’re in a position of responsibility within your organisation, you need to be mindful your party is still legally considered an extension of the workplace. If something goes wrong, you could face serious problems.

How can Christmas parties cause problems for organisations?

Let’s be clear, your party itself isn’t the problem. But your employee’s behaviour could be.

We know when alcohol and social settings combine, boundaries will blur. That’s where the risks can come into play, so you need to know what causes those risks to put mitigations in place from the outset.

Common causes of sexual harassment in the workplace during parties include:

• Excessive alcohol, which will lower inhibitions amongst all staff.
• Unclear expectations about behaviour before, during and after the party.
• No clear reporting routes if something goes wrong.

If an incident occurs, it doesn’t matter that it happened at a party. It’s still your responsibility.

We don’t want you to start the new year with a legal headache instead of a fresh business plan, which is why we’re outlining your legal responsibilities.

You have a legal responsibility to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace.

Since October 2024, UK employers have a proactive duty under the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace.

This includes making sure that you have implemented:

• Clear policies
• Training for staff
• Reporting and investigation processes

Those responsibilities are why we launched our prevention of sexual harassment toolkit.

We wanted to give organisations a helping hand to ensure they’re protecting their staff and their reputation.

If you’re a smaller organisaton, you probably don’t have an internal HR team, and you might not be ready to work with an external HR consultancy.

But you still need to adhere to the law.

That’s why our toolkit makes it easy for you to know what to do. We designed it specifically for busy managers who want peace of mind without drowning in complicated paperwork.

As we always say, protecting your team isn’t just a legal duty. It’s what great employers do.

This is what you need to do to prevent sexual harassment at your Christmas party.

Even if you don’t download our sexual harassment toolkit, there are things you can do in advance to prevent problems from occurring during your party.

These tips are easy to follow and help you set safe boundaries with your employees before the event, so you can all relax and enjoy the festivities.

• Set expectations from the outset. You can share a light-hearted reminder about respectful behaviour with your team before the event. A quick email or team chat could be enough to remind employees to remain respectful.
• Limit free-flowing alcohol. Unlimited bars are where the problems start. If you’re paying for your Christmas party, why not consider handing out drink tokens or setting a bar tab? That way, you can limit alcohol consumption and lower your bar bill!
• Choose the right venue. There are some great Christmas party venues to choose from. We always recommend choosing somewhere that maintains a professional feel because it helps preserve those boundaries. When choosing a location, make sure it’s well-staffed, has security measures in place, and offers easy ways for your team to get home safely.
• You could choose to nominate a senior point of contact during the evening. This isn’t about choosing someone to be the designated ‘fun police’, but it is about having someone (ideally who isn’t drinking alcohol) you can rely on to step in if things look like they could get out of hand.
• Remind staff about reporting routes. One of your key legal duties is to make sure staff know how to report incidents. As part of your internal communications, make sure your employees know how to raise confidential concerns before and after the party.   

These steps aren’t about spoiling the fun; they’re about making sure everyone feels safe and included.

It’s not too late to protect your upcoming Christmas party.

You’ve worked hard to create a positive workplace culture all year, so don’t let one night undo all that effort.

By taking proactive steps now, you can enjoy a festive celebration without worrying about legal risks or reputational damage.

If you do one thing in December, make sure you download our Sexual Harassment Toolkit.

It gives you everything you need: clear policies, reporting templates, and practical guidance designed for busy managers.

And at just £325 + VAT, it’s affordable and far cheaper than the risk of a post-party tribunal claim.