Team building in London: The top 9 nights out for team bonding

It's incredible how much of a positive difference one great night out can make to the dynamic of a team – nothing quite encourages bonding and camaraderie like a collective hangover come morning and a few war stories about the usually demure Sharon from HR throwing shapes atop a bar table. Teams that have fun together will go that extra mile at work, they're more likely to communicate with each other and problem solve together, not to mention the huge impact that a strong team dynamic has on staff retention.

Whether you like it or not, in today's job market potential candidates expect companies to provide a work/life balance experience where team socials and fun are constantly on the agenda. Fortunately London boasts an embarrassment of riches when it comes to unique team building nights out – here are 10 of the best!

P.S. If you're looking for some inspiration on entertaining clients in London, you might also find our round up of the 10 best venues in London for entertaining clients useful. And if you're local to Holborn or Islington, check out our round ups of the top 20 bars in Holborn and the top 20 bars in Islington.

1) Sling some social darts at Flight Club

When you've got members of the England Rugby Team crediting a night out at your venue for one of their best performances in the 6 Nations, you know you must be on to a team bonding winner. There are loads of different games to choose from and don't worry if you've never played before – being good at the traditional sport of darts is probably a handicap if anything!

Book your oche here: flightclubdarts.com

2) Sing your heart out at Lucky Voice

There are plenty of scientific studies that show singing together helps reduce stress and improve productivity, so a night spent belting out karaoke classics with colleagues in your own private room is a surefire team bonding winner. For smaller groups, take a look at hiring a private karaoke room at one of Lucky Voice's three London venues, and if you're after a more all inclusive team building experience, have a gander at the company's all day team builder at its Holborn venue.

Book your private karaoke room here: luckyvoice.com

3) Unleash your inner child at Ballie Ballerson

Jumping around in an adult ball pit while tipsy is exactly as much fun as it sounds! The wonderfully named Ballie Ballerson is a feast for the eyes, with over a million balls, loads of quirky UV decoration and an exclusive gold VIP pit for when you're really looking to be a baller at your next team building night out.

Book your ball pit here: ballieballerson.com

4) Shoot some (virtual) deer at Mac & Wild

For something completely different, consider Mac & Wild's virtual shooting range and whisky bar in Devonshire Square. You can choose to shoot either birds, deer, boar or bears with your state of the art replica shotguns and there's a wardrobe of shooting attire and tweed to really help you get in to the mood, as well as plenty of meat/haggis heavy dishes to enjoy between hunts. A competition hunting bears is certainly guaranteed to be a hot topic of conversation around the water cooler come Monday!

Book your virtual deer hunt here: macandwild.com/shooting-range-and-bar

5) Drink and drive at the Four Thieves

The Four Thieves Pub in Battersea is a wonderful adult playground spread across multiple floors with a range of fun activities to choose from. There's the pub's signature Moonshine Raceway where drink driving is positively encouraged, a range of fast paced VR gaming experiences, a madcap escape room called Lady Chastity's Reserve and an indoor 'Plonk' mini golf course to name but a few. The pub also brews its own range of delicious beers that are sure to keep your team well watered.

Book your arcade funhouse experience here: fourthieves.pub

6) Defeat the Crystal Maze

If you didn't spend your formative years watching teams compete against the fiendish difficulty of Richard O'Brien's Crystal Maze, did you even have a childhood? This fab team building event in London's West End is great for those after a joyous jaunt down memory lane as you traverse the same Aztec, Industrial, Futuristic and Medieval zones from the original TV show.

Book your attempt to beat the maze here: the-crystal-maze.com

7) Get crafty at the Crate Brewery tour

Guaranteed to get hop heads buzzing, a tour of Crate Brewery is a must-do team builder for all lovers of the amber brew. The brewery's Hackney Wick location is also perfectly suited for a few post-tour beverages in the many trendy bars and clubs around the area – an especially good choice in summer given all of the wonderful open air and canal-side venues nearby.

Book your brewery tour here: cratebrewery.com/brewery-and-tours

8) Pick a winner at Dabbers bingo

Based in Shoreditch, Dabbers offers up a madcap 21st century interpretation of the traditionally tame hobby of bingo. Expect live music, comedians, drag queens, mad prizes, a wonderfully silly and complex bingo ball machine and plenty of dabbing as you and your office team aim to win big while playing your gran's favourite pastime.

Book your bingo visit here: dabbers.bingo

9) Sink a hole in one at Junkyard Golf

Putting the crazy in crazy golf, Junkyard Golf on Brick Lane is perfect for a spot of friendly competition between your work colleagues, with oodles of psychedelic holes boasting questionable pop culture wordplay like 'You Used To Call Me On My Shell Phone' or 'B*** Don't Kill My Tribe'. And, being on Brick Lane, there's ample opportunity for a mouth watering curry after you've finished putting your way around the course.

Book your 9 holes or crazy golf here: junkyardgolfclub.co.uk/london

• Looking to turbocharge your next team building event in London? Check out the Lucky Voice ultimate team builder experience to really get the most out of your next team bonding session!