Film crew hire/Costume
Hire a costume designer or stylist, anywhere in the UK. Everyone dressed for the part, and the same from the first take to the last.
Costume designers and wardrobe stylists for adverts, brand films, drama and fashion shoots anywhere in the UK, booked from London. They source the wardrobe from shops, brands and costume houses, fit the cast before the day, and keep every outfit in continuity until wrap. £519–694 a day on the APA/Bectu card, stylist to costume designer, paid in full.
- 54 five-star Google reviews
- 2 hrs for our team to read your brief, in working hours
- £10m employers’ liability on every crew member we book
- 2,800+ freelance crew on our books, across the UK
Photos: Anna Rafal, Here Now Films, Aubrey Odom and bovin wook
The role
What costume and wardrobe do on your shoot
A wardrobe stylist chooses and fits what people wear on camera: buying, borrowing or hiring the clothes, fitting the cast before the shoot and dressing them on the day. A costume designer does the same for period or character work, designing and sourcing costume to the story. On set, wardrobe keeps every collar straight and every outfit in continuity.
On a corporate interview, wardrobe is usually a note on the call sheet: what to wear and what to leave at home. On an advert or a drama it’s a department, with prep days before the shoot and a returns day after it.
Where the clothes come from depends on the brief more than the city. Contemporary looks are bought in whichever city you’re shooting in, receipts kept for anything that goes back. Period costume and uniforms are hired: from London’s costume houses, or from the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester, which hires one of the city’s largest costume collections to film and TV. Costume hired there reaches a shoot in Glasgow or Cardiff by courier or with the stylist, and goes back the same way. We book a stylist who lives near the shoot where we can, with any travel on the quote.
- Dressed to the brief. A mood board agreed, the clothes sourced, and nothing on camera that fights the set or the brand.
- Fitted before the day. Fittings with the cast, alterations made, labels and logos dealt with.
- Continuity kept. A photo of every look, so day two matches day one.
- Returned on time. Hires and purchases tracked and returned, so hire charges don’t run on.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- An 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch
- Sourcing, buying or hiring the wardrobe to the brief
- Fitting and dressing the cast
- Steaming, pressing and running repairs on set
- A continuity photo of every look
- Returns, and the wardrobe budget accounted for
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, on the whole quote
- The wardrobe budget: purchases and hires, at cost
- Prep days for sourcing and fittings, and a returns day, which most jobs need
- A wardrobe assistant, for a bigger cast or several changes
- Couriers for costume hired from another city, and a van for collections and returns, at cost
- Travel, mileage and hotels when the shoot is away from the crew member’s home city, at cost
How our rates work, overtime and the APA/Bectu card: film crew rates in the UK.
Two ways to book
Crew hire or full production: who’s the producer of record?
One question sets the price: who’s the producer of record? Book a stylist or costume designer for your own shoot, anywhere in the UK, or have us take the whole production on.
Crew hire
You run the shoot.
10% + 2% booking fee and insurance, on everything we book for you: crew, kit and travel.
We do
- Find, book and brief the crew, and pay them
- Book kit, travel and hotels too, if you want them
- Send the full price before anything is booked
- One person to call all day
- Employers’ liability for the crew we book, and insurance on kit we hire in
You do
- Run the shoot, or your producer does
- The plan, the schedule and the call sheet
- The location, its permission and its public liability
- Responsibility for the production: you’re the producer of record
What the 2% insures: employers’ liability for every crew member we book, and the kit we hire in for you. Nothing else on the shoot. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote.
Full production
We’re the producer of record.
15% + 5% production fee, plus insurance and contingency, on the whole production budget. Quoted as a production.
We do
- Our producer plans it with you and runs the day
- Locations, permits, kit, studio, travel and hotels, booked and paid in our name
- Insurance for the whole shoot, public liability included, plus the risk assessment and the call sheet
- One contract and one invoice, so overseas teams need no UK company
You do
- The creative calls
- Signing off the plan and the budget
What the 5% pays for: our production insurance across the whole shoot, £10m public liability included, and the contingency.
Not sure which you need? If your own producer or director will run the day, it’s crew hire. If you want us to take the production on, it’s a full production quote.
On the day
A shoot with a wardrobe stylist, prep to returns
A brand film in Glasgow city centre with four cast, two looks each, and one jacket hired from a London costume house. Days and times are an example; the schedule sets the real ones.
- Prep 1 Brief and shopping Mood board agreed with the director, contemporary looks bought on Buchanan Street, receipts kept for anything that goes back.
- Prep 2 Hire and fittings The jacket hired by appointment and couriered up, each cast member fitted, alterations marked.
- 06:30 Wardrobe in Rails, a steamer and the labelled outfits in a spare room near make-up. The van is Euro 6: Glasgow’s Low Emission Zone has been enforced since June 2023, and a van that doesn’t meet it gets a fine, £60 for the first, not a daily charge (checked October 2026).
- 07:00 Cast dressed Each cast member in the first look after hair and make-up, checked against the mood board.
- 08:00 Camera check Looks checked on the monitor: a fine stripe that strobes on camera swapped for a plain shirt.
- 09:00 On set Collars, cuffs and lint between takes, and a continuity photo of every look.
- 14:00 Change Second looks steamed over lunch, and the cast changed in schedule order so the camera never waits.
- Returns Half a day Everything checked, labelled and back to the shop or the costume house, so the hire stops running.
Which kind
Which wardrobe role do you need?
From a note on the call sheet to a full costume department. Card rates are per 11-hour day.
Wardrobe stylist Contemporary looks, to a brief Card £519–647
Chooses and fits contemporary clothes for cast and contributors, from shops, brands and hire.
Best for adverts, brand films, fashion and lifestyle shoots, and presenters on stage.
Costume designer Period and character Card £519–694
Designs and sources costume for period, character or fantasy work, from costume houses or made to order.
Best for drama, reconstructions and heritage films, where the costume is researched to the era.
Wardrobe assistant Dressing and continuity on the day Card £341–398
Dresses the cast, steams and repairs, and keeps continuity, working to the stylist or designer.
Best on shoots with a bigger cast or several changes.
Wardrobe advice only Interviews and corporate Free with any booking
A note for contributors: plain mid-tone colours, no fine stripes or small checks, no big logos, and a spare top.
Best for interviews, where people wear their own clothes.
What it’s for
What people book costume and wardrobe for across the UK
Adverts and brand films
A cast dressed to the brand, with no logos that shouldn’t be there, from a house in Surrey to a street in Leeds.
Fashion and lifestyle
Looks styled to a mood board, often alongside hair and make-up, on a studio cove or on location.
Drama and reconstructions
Period costume hired in, fitted before the day and returned after it, for heritage films and documentaries.
Overseas productions
A visiting team that brings its talent but not its wardrobe, and needs a stylist who knows where to shop.
Uniforms
Medical, police, trades and hospitality, sourced to look right on camera, with police uniform cleared with the film office first.
How we crew it
How we crew costume across the UK
How a wardrobe booking runs with us, wherever the shoot is.
How we crew it · UK
Prep, shoot and returns, all on the quote
A styling job is more than the shoot day. We quote the prep day for sourcing and fittings, the shoot day and the returns, each on its own line, so the budget doesn’t grow after wrap. The wardrobe itself is at cost, with every purchase and hire listed. Costume hired in another city travels by courier or with the stylist, and goes back before the hire runs on.
How we crew it · UK
Where the costume comes from
In London, Angels in Hendon holds more than a million costumes, with civilian and military uniform collections, and the National Theatre hires costume from its store in Bermondsey, weekdays by appointment. In Manchester, the Royal Exchange Theatre hires from one of the city’s largest costume collections, also weekdays by appointment. In Birmingham, contemporary looks come from Bullring & Grand Central, and period stock comes up from London. Our props and wardrobe guides list the rest: London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol and Cornwall.
Before you book
Things to know
The day
- 11 hours, including an hour for lunch: ten working hours.
- Overtime by the hour at the APA card’s rate for the role, agreed with you before it happens.
- At least 11 hours between wrap and the next day’s call.
- Prep and returns days are quoted separately, each on its own line.
The wardrobe budget
- Purchases and hires at cost, each on its own line.
- Returns made on time, so hire charges don’t run on.
- Most of London’s costume houses work by appointment: the stylist books the fitting before the shoot is confirmed.
Police uniform
- In England and Wales, wearing police uniform in a way “calculated to deceive” is an offence under section 90 of the Police Act 1996.
- So film offices want to hear first: in London the Met Police Film Unit, in the West Midlands Production Central WM, which asks for uniforms to be covered between takes.
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the stylist.
- 50% by card when you book, 50% on receipt of the final rushes.
- Every line on the quote: day rate, booking fee, kit, travel.
- Moving the date? Tell us as soon as you know.
- Cancellation terms are on every quote.
What our insurance covers
- Employers’ liability for the stylist we book: £10m.
- Kit we hire in for you is insured. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote.
- Nothing else on a crew hire. Public liability, the location and your own kit stay with you, and your venue will want your certificate. When we’re the producer of record, our policy covers the shoot.
From £519 a day
The APA/Bectu card range, wardrobe stylist to costume designer. One day at the bottom of it:
| Stylist, 11 hours | £519 |
| Booking fee, 10% | £51.90 |
| Insurance, 2% | £10.38 |
| One day, before wardrobe and travel | £581.28 + VAT |
The 2% is employers’ liability for the stylist we book, and cover on kit we hire in. Insurance for a UK shoot
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the booking.
- 50% by card at booking, 50% on the final rushes
- Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours
- Every line on the quote before anything is booked
Or call us on 07412 543822.
Reviews
What clients say about our crews
Straight from our Google Business Profile.
Book a costume designer or stylist, anywhere in the UK.
Tell us how many people to dress, the look or the period, where you’re shooting and the dates. Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. Or call us on 07412 543822.
Check availability
The whole crew
Every role across the UK, booked the same way
One brief, one quote, every role on its own line. Our UK day rates, paid to the crew member in full:
Production 06
- Director From £500
- Producer From £450
- Production manager £504–627
- 2nd AD £355–448
- Production assistant £400
- Runner £245
Camera 09
- DOP From £850
- Camera operator £529–656
- Lighting camera operator £529–656
- Videographer £529–656
- Focus puller (1st AC) £461–575
- Clapper loader (2nd AC) £355–448
- Steadicam operator From £950
- Gimbal operator £529–656
- Drone operator From £750
Data and playback 02
- DIT £527
- Video playback £334–518
Sound 01
- Sound recordist £550
Hair, make-up and costume 02
- Hair and make-up £398
- Costume This page £519–694
Art department 02
- Art director £675–878
- Set builders £341–512
Post-production 01
- Editor From £350
How our rates work: crew rates across the UK. In one city? London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol and Cornwall have their own role pages.
Production support
Everything around the crew
Wardrobe works alongside hair and make-up, the art department and a van outside, so here’s how the rest of a UK shoot fits around it.
01
Crew rates in the UK
Day rates for every role, the APA/Bectu card, overtime and what a day covers.
02
Kit and equipment hire
Rental houses across the UK, wet hire and dry hire, and the crew’s own kit.
03
Insurance for a UK shoot
Employers’ liability, public liability, kit cover, and what can leave you uninsured.
Questions
Hiring a costume designer or stylist in the UK: questions
How much does a wardrobe stylist or costume designer cost?
The APA/Bectu card puts a wardrobe stylist at £519–647 for an 11-hour day and a costume designer at £519–694, and we pay that in full. On top go our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, so a day starts at £581.28 + VAT. Prep and returns days are quoted as days, and the wardrobe itself is at cost. The rate is the same in every city we crew.
What does the insurance on a crew booking cover?
Two things. Employers’ liability for every crew member we book, up to £10m, and insurance on the kit we hire in for you. That’s what the 2% pays for. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote. The 2% doesn’t insure the rest of the shoot: public liability, the location, your own kit and anything you book yourself stay with you, because you’re the producer of record. If you’d rather we were, it’s quoted as a full production, and our insurance covers the whole shoot, public liability included.
How long is the day, and what about overtime?
A day is 11 hours, ten of them working and one for lunch. After that, overtime is paid by the hour at the APA card’s rate for the role: 1.5×, 1.25× or single time on an hourly rate of a tenth of the day rate, graded by day rate, and we agree it with you before it happens. Between wrap and the next call there are at least 11 hours. Film crew rates in the UK
Where do you source costume outside London?
Contemporary clothes come from the city you’re shooting in. Period costume, uniform collections and anything specialist come from the costume houses in London or the Royal Exchange Theatre’s collection in Manchester. They reach a shoot in Edinburgh or Cardiff by courier or with the stylist, and the courier and the trip are on the quote. The city guides have the detail: London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol and Cornwall.
Can actors wear police uniform on location?
Yes, with the police told first. In England and Wales, wearing police uniform in a way calculated to deceive is an offence under section 90 of the Police Act 1996 (checked October 2026). In London the Met Police Film Unit wants to hear about fake uniforms and police vehicles before you shoot, and actors in police costume don’t leave the set. In the West Midlands, Production Central WM tells West Midlands Police and asks for uniforms to be covered between takes. See filming locations and permits in the UK.
Is a freelance stylist self-employed?
Usually. HMRC’s employment status manual lists costume designers and wardrobe stylists among the behind-camera roles normally treated as self-employed, where most of the work happens away from the engager’s premises or the booking is for a specific production for a finite period (ESM4120, checked October 2026). When you book through us, we contract and pay the stylist, and you pay one invoice.
What should contributors wear for an interview?
Plain, mid-tone colours; no fine stripes, small checks or big logos; and a spare top in case. Ask them to bring it on a hanger.
Do I need a wardrobe assistant too?
For a cast of more than four or five, several changes, or period costume, yes: one person can’t dress everyone and watch the set.