Current hire procedures and covid safety

1. COVID-SAFETY

 We are still upholding basic covid-safety measures to protect our volunteers and manage busy days in our open-plan environment and therefore ask you to:

• not attend your appointment if you feel unwell and have not taken a lateral flow test, or have received a positive result from an LF test.
• use the sanitiser provided upon entering
• wear a face mask (unless you are exempt) whilst interacting with us in the store
• dress warmly as we keep the doors open as much as possible for ventilation
• be mindful of social distancing
• let us know if you have used our bathroom facilities

In return our team will:

• attend work in good health and where required, take lateral flow tests prior to attending in accordance with our internal covid-safety procedures
• regularly use sanitiser, be mindful of social distancing and wear face masks whilst interacting with you
• keep the space well ventilated, weather allowing and keep the bathroom facilities clean
• aim for appointments to be spaced apart as far as possible to manage the number of people in the building at any one time
• quarantine garments that have been tried on

 

2. COSTUME HIRE

Our hiring priority is to our beneficiaries and the wider arts community; we also welcome private hirers who are looking for a vintage look, or historical / fantasy character. We do not stock Disney, animation, gaming or replica film character costumes.

Selecting costumes:

Our D.I.Y. service means that you can explore the costume aisles yourself and make your own costume choices. The store is well organised and labelled and we will guide you and assist where this suits you, or you can style costumes independently. As this is different to an ‘off-the-peg’ experience, please allow enough time for browsing and choosing.

With notice, we may have time to pull out some costume options ahead of your visit.

This D.I.Y. service reflects:

• our low-cost pricing structure whereby our beneficiary groups access a subsidised hire-package
• our capacity to help everyone fairly, operating with a small -and fantastic- team of volunteers

Resource Boxes:

For schools and community groups these can be ordered in advance, with the number of items agreed and made ready for collection. Equally you can visit and make your own selection.

Trying on garments:

• Our changing room is now open and is used by more than one person during the day. It is positioned by the open back door for ventilation
• Trying on garments over clothes, in the reception area, is still an option provided you are fully dressed. Anything tried on that will subsequently not be hired will be quarantined.
• You can take away surplus costume options to be tried on away from the store, paying hire costs only for items you ultimately use.

 

3. HIRE TRANSACTIONS

At point of hire:

• Items will be listed / photographed and handed over to you in bags, boxes or garment covers.
• You will be given a paper copy of the hire form and sent any photos by email or WhatsApp.
• Depending on the type of hire, usual procedures regarding cleaning of costumes will apply.
• In most cases you will need to leave a deposit, refundable upon return of our costumes.
• Payments: onsite contactless / card payments or invoicing are preferable.

Returning hired items:

•  Make an appointment to return costumes.
• Make sure to check everything off your list before items are returned to us.
• Cover / close all bags and ideally quarantine for 48hrs before returning them to us.

If you have taken surplus items, let us know which you used, and separate out any items that need cleaning.

 

4. DONATIONS AND RE-HOMING

Donations of costumes, props and artefacts: thank you for thinking of us, we are so grateful for your continued support. Please see our procedures here.

Rehoming scheme: we have surplus costumes and fabrics to gift to schools, charities and community groups. Please contact us here to enquire.

We are intensely busy and thank you in advance for your patience and understanding.