Prom pop up appeal returns for 2026

Are you planning a wardrobe clear-out and have some formal wear that you could donate to a worthy cause?

Orkney’s hugely successful Community Learning, Development and Employability Prom Pop-Up appeal is returning, to help ensure every young person can strut their stuff on prom night in an outfit of their dreams.

Donations of dresses, suits, shirts, waistcoats, ties, jumpsuits, jackets, shoes and anything else is being sought – with collection points available across the Mainland.

In 2025, nearly 100 young people benefitted from pre-loved formal wear, with 200 items finding new homes.

This year, items can be dropped off from 1 – 28 March in the ‘Kit4All’ collection points located at: 

Drop in and try on sessions will then take place for Stromness Academy pupils on the 31st March from 8.30am – 2:00pm and Kirkwall Grammar School pupils on the 1st April from 8.30am – 2:00pm in the respective schools. 

Encouraging the reuse of preloved items, keeps them from landfill whilst also helping to keep costs down for prom goers and their families.

The Council’s Youth and Family Learning Worker, Karen Bevan, said: “Our appeals have been very successful in previous years, and we are confident that this year will be no different.

“Pre-loved clothes are very much part of how we all – including young folk - collate our wardrobes nowadays, especially through the recent rise of resale apps like Depop and Vinted, as well as the continued success of more established businesses like eBay. The Prom Pop-Up is like a local version of that. 

“We look forward to sorting through the donations and helping our young folk find the outfit that will help them shine on the night.”