Volunteer

                                                   Isobel and Charlie take a break from volunteering for some dressing-up fun

We believe volunteering should be a rewarding and fun experience therefore, we tailor a volunteer’s role as much as possible to suit them. You may be interested in fashion and costumes, theatre and the Arts or sewing and textiles. Or perhaps you would enjoy volunteering in a creative, fun, inclusive setting. See Volunteer Testimonials to find out what others are getting up to,

Volunteers come from all backgrounds and combine aspects of the roles listed below to suit their interests, skills and experience, as well as support personal aims such as broadening their skill-set, sharing established skills, gaining work experience, or enhancing a CV. We provide induction, training and peer support, and offer sewing skills / upskilling sessions for all.

We ask volunteers to work a minimum of 4-5 hours a week, and you can opt to volunteer on more than one day. We run our own Textile Sustainability Placements and also accomodate student, work experience and DofE placements, as well as tailored internships.

VOLUNTEER ROLES:

FRONT OF HOUSE ASSISTANT: You could be helping visitors orient the treasure trove of costume aisles and handling the hire process for costumes that leave the store or are returned to us. You don't need specific experience and would play a role in making Gladrags a welcoming place by greeting customers and keeping the costumes tidy and organised.

COSTUME STYLING ASSISTANT: Particularly suitable if you have knowledge in costume or dress history, this role entails researching, sourcing and styling outfits for individuals and groups. You might create a 'look', help curate costume collections, or prepare outfits for display and photographic purposes.

BUSINESS ADMIN ASSISTANT: This role has a focus on the admin procedures involved in hiring out costumes, from managing digital hire systems to calculating costings. You could also assist with marketing, office admin or the running of campaign and events. 

REHOME AND RETRO SALES ASSISTANT: If you have an eye for retro fashion, you could be helping us assess donated clothing, fabrics and costumes to sell or give away. You would prepare garments for our online selling platforms or vintage sales events; you could also help to run sale events.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH VOLUNTEER: In addition to regular volunteering you can be part of our Community Team, providing activities to communities experiencing hardship. You could be helping us to run family dress-up and textile craft activities, reminiscence sessions with older people or sewing skills workshops with young people.

SEWING AND REPAIR VOLUNTEER: You could share or develop your skills by repairing, restoring or customising costumes, accessories and props. You may have the skill to make items from scratch, repurposing pre-loved materials to fashion garments, hats and props, as well as replicating historical artefacts for school or reminiscence resource boxes.

SUSTAINABILITY PLACEMENT: With a particular focus on Gladrags’ ethos of circular fashion, this placement offers a module menu of task areas that enable volunteers to develop knowledge of sustainable practice whilst supporting our costume provision. You will gain a certification upon completing this placement.

Volunteer working hours:

• Tuesdays 10am to 6.30pm
• Thursdays 10am to 6.30pm
• Fridays 10am to 6:30pm

For all volunteering enquiries, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator, Jo Tolley:

• 01273 609184
• or via the Contact Form