Cost of living: Solihull teacher turns 'fairy godmother' for prom
BBCA teacher has started a pop-up shop of donated dresses and suits after one of her pupils told her she would not be attending her prom due to the cost.
Stefanie Lakin, who works at St Peter's Catholic School in Solihull, said the response to her online appeal for clothes had been overwhelming.
Hundreds of items have been donated and will be given to students who otherwise would have no special outfit.
Ms Lakin said she "felt like a fairy godmother".
She added of the pupil who was struggling to afford a dress: "It just didn't feel right that she wasn't going to go so I spoke to her and said 'if I could get you a dress to go to the prom, would you want to go'?"
The teacher appealed for dresses on Facebook and hundreds were donated along with suits.
She has set up a non-profit organisation called Madrina, which means godmother in Italy, where her mother is from.
Having helped pupils at her own school, Ms Lakin said she turned her attention to students at other schools in the West Midlands.
"I thought 'there has got to be girls elsewhere that need a dress' and so I got in contact with different colleagues that I know across the region," she said.
Stuart Dix, head of Year 11 at St Michael's C of E Secondary School in neighbouring Sandwell, praised the initiative, saying it helped prevent costs becoming a barrier to pupils who wanted to celebrate the end of term.
"It is a really good chance to be able to go with friends to have a night where they have gone through their exams, like a real light at the end of the tunnel," he said.
Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [email protected]