New Horsham shop provides FREE prom dresses and suits for teenage school leavers

The shop – Prom Dreams in West Street – provides free prom dresses and suits for local school students.

It is the brainchild of mum and nursery worker Emma Green, 36, and her partner James White.

“The idea came because I saw a post on Facebook from a single parent asking if anybody had anything for their child as they couldn’t afford anything for them to wear for their prom,” said Emma.

“I thought about how expensive it is with the dress/suit, hair, make up, transport etc and how these outfits would only be used once then put to the back of a wardrobe.”

She put out a plea for donations of any dresses or suits and received a huge response. “We now have an amazing collection of both suits and dresses, shoes and accessories,” she said.

Any families who want to access the shop need to make an appointment as it is not open all the time. Referrals are also made by schools and social workers.

Emma and James first launched the service in Brighton in 2019 but it was halted by the Covid pandemic. After moving to Horsham, they set up a similar service last year but are now keen to expand and help even more teenagers and their families.

Last year, the service had support from Swan Walk who provided a unit and helped with storage. Now they are set to help even more with their new shop which is opposite Poundland in West Street.

“The public have been amazing with donations,” said Emma. “We have a couple of drop off locations as our shop isn’t open all the time – appointments are usually after school times late afternoon or weekends. But we have some great people helping us with taking in donations – The Holbrook Club, Horsham, and All That Glitters inside Swan Walk.”

She added: “It’s a totally free service and gives families that can’t afford to go to high market Prom shops the same experience.

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