Handling Catering

Because do_actiondo_action do_action hackathons are community-organised events that are focussed on using WordPress to give deserving charitable organisations their own online presence. Learn more on doaction.org. events are full day affairs, you need to provide food for your participants. This usually involves the following:

• Breakfast (or at least a selection of something small, like muffins, to start the day off)
• Lunch
• Dinner
• Tea, coffee and snacks throughout the day

If your venue is a co-working space, then there’s a very good chance that they will be providing tea and coffee throughout the day for you, so discuss that with them. Other than that, you can organise any kind of food you like, but be aware of potential dietary requirements of your participants and cater accordingly.

While the teams will be hard at work the whole day, it is nice to take at least a small break for lunch. With that in mind, it’s great if your venue has a designated area for meals so that your participants can get some time away from their screens. If the venue does not have that as an option, however, then don’t stress – make sure the food is the type of food that can be eaten while standing and you won’t have any problems.

Depending on the size if your event, catering can get quite expensive, so it’s a good idea to make sure your caterers are aware of the fact that this is a charity event. In many cases, that will allow them to bring their costs down quite considerably for you in exchange for a mention as a sponsor of the day. That is perfectly acceptable and actively encouraged.

Last updated: February 10, 2017