The humble staff uniform, usually bearable at best but often downright embarrassing, is being preserved for posterity at a Sussex museum.

Polyester uniforms from department store C&A are among the historical relics being safeguarded at Worthing Museum and Art Gallery.

The museum acquired the outfits from the former Montague Centre store in the town.

Curator Ann Wise said: "I can't imagine any of the staff ever thought their uniforms would end up here but we were asked if we wanted any of the old outfits and we said yes."

Among the pieces of preserved uniform are a fetching green waistcoat worn by male workers and a standard-issue cream blouse and navy skirt worn by the women. A collection of in-store promotional t-shirts are also included.

Ms Wise said: "The shop is a piece of Worthing's history and should be part of our collection, even though it might seem a bit unusual."

The museum, in Chapel Road, is well known for its collection of unusual clothes which is one of the largest in the country.

Boxes, each individually marked with a description of the item of clothing and date, are piled on top of each other in the museum's stockrooms.

The sheer volume highlights the fact only a fraction of the town's history is on display at any one time.

Clothes from virtually every era have been preserved from the tudor period through the swinging sixties and today.

The collection is proving a great resource to film and television companies and they are also loaned to local schools for history projects.

When producers of Channel 4's The Edwardian Country House needed information about knickers they called Worthing Museum for help.

Staff were also on hand when the BBC needed fashion tips for costume dramas Pride and Prejudice and Vanity Fair.

Ms Wise said: "A museum like the V and A in London will collect more upmarket type of clothes whereas I am interested in everything from couture to the high street and home made.

"I am sure they wouldn't have anything from M & S, but we do and also from Top Shop."

Among the more extraordinary items in the collection are wartime dresses made out of maps and parachutes when material was in short supply.

One of the treasures of the collection is a black work linen jacket from 1615 which was donated in the Eighties by a Chichester woman who asked them to keep her donation a secret from her family.

Ms Wise said: "I don't think they knew what she was up to. I'm still not sure whether they ever found out she had donated it to us.

"It is definitely one of our most important pieces. It is in perfect condition and the needlework is exquisite.

"It would have been worn by a wealthy adult woman but because body shapes have changed so much it looks to us as though it would only fit a child."

There are also Victorian shawls alongside designer dresses from the Fifties as well as Sixties dresses with psychedelic patterns.

The museum's wedding dress collection also charts the changing fashions in bridal wear.