All Dressed Up is a not-for-profit project that gifts donated prom dresses to school students in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire that need them.
About.
No teenager should miss their school prom because they can’t afford a dress to wear. All Dressed Up is a not-for-profit project that gifts donated prom dresses to school students in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire that need them. To ensure the dresses reach those in most financial need, schools are contacted to invite young people to one of our pop-up shops where they can choose a prom dress free of charge.
Launched by Lara Davis in 2019, All Dressed Up is all about inclusion and sustainable fashion. We receive no funding, so we are very grateful to all our project partners and volunteers for their support.
Donate dresses.
We are now closed to donations until September 2024, so please hang on to your prom dresses until then.
We accept new and pre-loved dresses suitable for a school prom in any size, (small and large sizes particularly welcome) in a clean, ready-to-wear condition. We also accept evening bags and accessories but can’t take shoes.
We receive dresses from individuals, businesses and schools, retailers and manufacturers that donate samples or unsold stock. We are very grateful to everyone who has donated dresses and supported us in any way since 2019.
Other ways to help.
We are grateful to the following individuals and companies for their support for our pop-up shops since 2019.
- packing and posting invites thanks to HourHands
- transport thanks to Total Removals London Ltd
- storage thanks to JA Steel and Son
- heavy duty clothes rails, mirrors and clothes hangers thanks to Waste Aware Hertfordshire Partnership
- make up artists from Body Shop Luton, Kiko Milano and Catherine Batour
- personal stylists Nina Whitehead and Lisa Wisdom
- items to style our pop-up shops thanks to Zig Zag Event Decorations Luton.
- printing of invites thanks to Mac Pro Design Ltd
- venues for our pop-up shops thanks to STAGS, Youthscape Luton and The Mall Luton
- large carrier bags thanks to Debenhams, Superdry Luton, Lipsy London, Oui, Threads Harpenden, Chloe James Lifestyle, Body Shop Luton, Topshop Luton.
- health and beauty items goody bags thanks to Next and The Hygiene Bank
- all our volunteers who have sorted dresses, set up and staffed our shops
- and of course, everyone that has donated dresses, accessories and evening bags
If you or your company can support us in any way please get in touch.
How it works.
- Clean, good condition, new or pre-loved dresses suitable for a school prom, evening bags and accessories are donated.
- Invites to our pop-up prom dress shops are sent to Headteachers/Heads of Year 11 in all Herts and Beds secondary schools in January each year to pass on confidentially to students that receive Pupil Premium (free school meals)
- Additional invites can be requested from a school email address by emailing lara.davis@alldressedup.org.uk. There is a limited number of invites available, so please check how many students want one before you make a request for more.
- Youth and social workers can also request invites from a work email address.
- Parents or carers of eligible Year 11 students should speak to their child’s school and ask the school to email lara.davis@alldressedup.org.uk to request an invite if they are not offered one by school.
- No names or contact details of young people invited are given to All Dressed Up.
- Every young person is asked to come to one of our pop-up shops with one adult – a relative, carer or friend over 18 years – and must bring their invite to exchange for a prom dress free of charge.
- There is a good selection of dresses (styles and sizes) to choose from, but there’s no guarantee that everyone will find a dress that’s suitable for them.
- Dresses do not need to be returned.
FAQs
We accept dresses suitable for a school prom that are in good condition, clean and ready to wear.
Dresses can be:
- New or preloved
- All sizes (we are always short of sizes 4,6 and 18, 20,22)
- Any colour
- Long or short
We are currently closed to donations and will reopen in September 2024. Please hold onto any suitable dresses for us.
We are currently closed to donations as we have plenty of stock and limited storage but we usually we accept evening bags, jewellery (earrings must be new) and scarves but cannot accept shoes.
If you don’t have dresses or accessories to donate there are plenty of other ways you could help.
We can’t take self referrals and an invite will be needed to gain entry to the shop.
If you are a member of staff in any Herts or Beds secondary school, a social worker or youth worker, you can request invites for students that receive pupil premium or low income by emailing lara,davis@alldressedup.org.uk from your work email with your contact name, quantity needed and postal address. Because there are limited invites available, please check with young people that they want one before you make your request. This ensures no invites are wasted.
Our pop-up prom dress shops are invite only. If you are invited (via your school, social worker or youth worker) all details you need will be on your invite. Don’t forget to bring it with you to gain entry to the shop – you’ll need it to exchange for a dress.
The range of dresses we have at our pop-up shops will depend on those we receive as donations, so we cannot guarantee that you will find something that suits you. We ask people to donate dresses in all styles, colours and sizes and there will be a good selection available.
All the dresses have been donated, so your dress is free of charge. After your prom, you can keep your dress or pass on to someone else to wear for their prom.
Because we don’t hold a list of who has been invited to the pop-up shop, unfortunately you won’t be able to come in without your invite. You also need to have your invite with you to exchange for your dress.
Because all the dresses are donated, you can keep it to wear again or pass it on to someone else to wear for their prom.
Contact.
If you have any questions about All Dressed Up, please email us or fill out the form below and we’ll get back to you.
Thank you to our project partners
