Long service cards for British workplaces

Work anniversary cards that make ten years of service feel noticed

An HR email and a line in the newsletter is the usual reward for a decade at the same firm. Give your colleague something better: a card signed by the people who actually worked alongside them, from the warehouse floor to the regional office.

Free to start. From $3.99 to send. No subscription.

Create a card | See a sample card

• Every site can sign: Head office, depots, shifts and home workers all get the same link.
• A whip round in pounds: Colleagues add to a joint present while they write, with no envelope.
• On the exact date: Schedule the card for the morning of their start date anniversary.
• From $3.99 per card: Free to set up. Packs help if HR sends lots of these each year.

Covers for long service and work anniversaries

Trophies, rosettes, fireworks and big thank you designs. Put their name on the front and, if you like, the number of years.

• Congrats!
• You did it!
• Big congrats!
• Cheers to you!
• You’re a star
• You’re a star!
• Thank you!
• Happy anniversary!
• Happy retirement!
• Happy birthday!
• Farewell, legend!
• Get well soon!

Organising a work anniversary card in four steps

1. Pick the design: Choose a congratulations or thank you cover, add their name and set the anniversary as the delivery date.
2. Send the link round: Paste it in Teams, Slack or a team email, and forward it to people at other sites. No logins needed.
3. Collect the messages: Colleagues write, add photos from past away days, or record a short video or voice note. Anyone can add to the whip round.
4. Deliver it on the day: It arrives in their inbox at the time you picked, perhaps just before the team coffee or the presentation.

What makes a long service card worth reading

Long service is about people, not policy. These are the parts that make a work anniversary card feel personal.

• The people who were there

  Current team, old managers who moved departments, and colleagues at the Swindon depot can all sign together.

• An easy whip round

  Pounds go straight into a gift pot on the card. The organiser never handles cash or chases transfers on payday.

• Video from senior leaders

  A thirty second video from the managing director means far more than a signature, and takes less time to make.

• Never miss the date

  Set it up weeks in advance and it goes out on the anniversary itself, even if you are on leave that week.

• Thankeeu for Teams

  Companies can automate birthday and work anniversary cards for every employee, with staff imported from their HR system.

• Credits that keep

  Buy a pack of five for the year’s anniversaries. Credits never expire, so nothing is wasted if a date moves.

Why work anniversaries matter in British workplaces

Plenty of UK employers have a long service scheme of some kind: an extra day of annual leave after five years, a voucher at ten, a lunch with the directors at twenty five. Those are welcome, but they come from the company. What people remember is whether the colleagues they sit with every day noticed.

A shared card is the simplest way to show that. It costs almost nothing, takes ten minutes to organise, and gives quieter people a way to say something they would never say out loud in the kitchen. For someone who has been with the business through mergers, office moves and a pandemic, that matters.

• Five years: Long enough to have trained half the current team. A card from the immediate team is perfect.
• Ten years: A real milestone. Bring in other departments and former managers.
• Twenty years and over: Worth a proper presentation, a gift and a card signed by the whole site.

Shift work, depots and hybrid teams

The paper card falls apart in workplaces where people never overlap. A nurse on nights, a driver out on routes all week, a colleague who is in the office on Tuesdays only. Each of them can sign the same card from their own phone, in their own time, and nobody has to leave a card in the staff room hoping the right person finds it.

Organisers can see who has signed so far and give a gentle reminder to the rest. If the colleague works across sites, send the link to each site manager and let them share it locally.

For HR teams: making anniversaries routine

If you are in HR or office management and you send a few of these every month, the manual way gets tiring. Buying a pack of five keeps the cost per card low, and because credits never expire you can spread them across the year.

Larger organisations can use Thankeeu for Teams, which automates both birthday and work anniversary cards for every employee and pulls staff dates from the HR system, so a long service milestone never slips through. For colleagues who are leaving instead, take a look at our leaving cards.

Work anniversary messages for a UK colleague

Short, sincere and a little bit funny tends to land best. Here are a few to adapt.

• Happy ten years. The place would honestly fall over without you, and we all know it.
• Twenty five years of service and still the first to put the kettle on. Thank you.
• Congratulations on five years. You have made the team better every single one of them.
• A decade of good advice, good humour and good biscuits. Happy work anniversary.
• Thank you for always explaining things twice without sighing. Here is to the next five.
• You were here before the new building, the new system and most of us. Happy anniversary.
• Long service is one thing. Long service with this much patience deserves a medal.
• Fifteen years and you still remember everyone’s birthday. Today it is our turn to remember yours, well, your work one.

Group card prices in UK

There is no subscription for individuals. Build the card and gather messages for free, then pay once to send it. If your team marks lots of anniversaries, a pack of five is the better value.

Credits never expire. Every card includes unlimited signers, photos, GIFs, voice notes and a PDF download. Most Popular adds video and the Memory Movie.

How Thankeeu compares

Kudoboard and Thankbox are popular for team cards in the UK. Here is how they compare with Thankeeu for long service and work anniversary cards.

Competitor prices and features as listed on each company’s own pricing page in October 2026, in US dollars. Not listed means we could not find it there. Check their sites for changes.

Frequently asked questions

What do you write in a work anniversary card?

Thank them for something specific they do, mention the number of years, and add a memory or a bit of humour. Two or three sentences is plenty, and a voice note works well for people who hate writing.

How much does a work anniversary card cost?

It is free to set up and sign. You pay once when you send it, from $3.99 for one card, which is around £3.02 depending on the exchange rate.

Is a work anniversary card the same as a long service award?

No. A long service award usually comes from the company. A work anniversary card comes from colleagues, and the two go well together.

Can people sign without a Thankeeu account?

Yes. Anyone with the link can sign from a phone or computer without registering or downloading an app.

Can we do a whip round for a long service gift?

Yes. Turn on the gift pot and colleagues chip in any amount in pounds when they sign. The recipient claims it to their bank or as a digital gift card.

Can colleagues at other sites sign?

Yes. Send the link by email or chat to any office, depot or home worker and they sign the same card.

Can I schedule the card for their start date?

Yes. Choose the date and the exact time, and the card is delivered by email then.

Can former colleagues add a message?

Yes. Anyone you share the link with can sign, including former managers who have moved on.

Is there a limit to the number of signers?

No. Every card takes unlimited signers, which helps for big sites and whole company milestones.

Can our company automate work anniversary cards?

Yes. Thankeeu for Teams sends birthday and work anniversary cards automatically and can import staff from your HR system.

Can the card be shown at a team presentation?

Yes. Open it on the meeting room screen or, with Most Popular, play the Memory Movie made from all the messages and photos.

What years should we mark with a card?

Five, ten, fifteen, twenty and twenty five years are the common ones in the UK. Some teams also mark the first year, which new starters appreciate.

More group cards in UK

• Online baby shower cards UK
• Online anniversary cards UK

The same card in other countries

• Work anniversary cards US
• Work anniversary cards Canada

Guides and comparisons

• The 5 best online group card websites in 2026
• Turn voice notes and photos into a keepsake video
• What to write for a work anniversary

Also on Thankeeu

• Work anniversary cards
• Memory Movie
• Live Memory Wall
• Pricing

Notice the people who stayed

Set up the work anniversary card now, share it round the team, and let it land on the day they started.