Women's charity Bright Futures 'overwhelmed' with the response to pre-loved prom dress event in South Tyneside

Women’s charity Bright Futures organised the event to as they did not want the cost of a dress to be a reason a girl can’t attend their prom.

And organisers were overwhelmed to see more than 100 dresses donated to the cause.

Dominique Hendry, project manager said, the ‘Say Yes to the Prom Dress’ event was all about promoting inclusion and sustainable fashion.

She said: “The event was set up following conversations that had taken place with some of the young women we work with. They had expressed concerns about the cost of dresses and the financial strain on their families. We wanted to ensure that the cost of a prom dress is not the reason young women attend.

“We’ve had a fantastic response from the community who have supported the event with donations of the following: dresses, shoes, bags and jewellery. The project details were shared with local agencies and secondary schools to target young women most in need of a dress."

Dominique said the charity was delighted with the response, receiving more 100 dresses with still more donations to come.

She said due to the demand, the team has decided to hold more events leading up to school proms.

Bright Futures works with young women aged up to 25 to give them a brighter future by raising their self-esteem and confidence around a range of issues which affect them including alcohol and substance misuse, child sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual health and relationships, homelessness, family relationships, friendships, school, education, training, crime and antisocial behaviour.

The prom dress is the latest event organised by the charity in South Tyneside as it works to tackle such issues.

Other work included ‘Girls Standing Up’ workshops over the summer holidays, delivering educational sessions covering topics such as consent, healthy relationships, harassment and female empowerment.

And girls on the Gazette reported earlier in 2022 how girls working with Bright Futures had come up with the idea of making ‘period passes’ for school-aged girls which they can show to their teacher and grant them access to the toilet with no questions asked, to avoid potentially distressing situations.

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