Wear Not Waste campaign encourages us to reuse and re-wear our old clothes

Gloucestershire Recycles is running the campaign, which takes place during the national awareness month Second Hand September. Wear Not Waste aims to reduce the negative impact that clothing has on our planet, which includes accounting for 10% of carbon emissions and 20% of water waste globally.  

In the UK, approximately 350,000 tonnes of clothes are binned each year rather than recycled, wasting valuable resources and further adding to the negative environmental impact caused by textiles. 

Councillor Mike Evemy, portfolio holder for waste and recycling at Cotswold District Council, said: “Most of us know that fast fashion can be wasteful and damaging to the environment because of the resource-intensive way items are produced, the materials used and the fact many items are of low quality and don’t last. 

“There is some good news though. Two-thirds of people in the UK say they have bought clothing second-hand and the vintage market is booming, particularly among younger people. By 2032, it is predicted that sales in the second-hand clothing market could overtake those of fast fashion.  

“Wear Not Waste is backing the many ways that people can join this movement; for example by holding a clothes swap, selling or donating clothes they no longer wear, repairing instead of throwing away, and responsibly recycling any items that are too damaged to pass on. We hope that lots of people will get involved, during September and beyond.” 

Clothes that aren’t good enough to pass on, sell or donate can be left out for recycling crews to collect (in a tied up carrier bag placed inside either recycling box to keep them dry), taken to one of Gloucestershire County Council’s household recycling centres, or taken to one of the clothes recycling banks in the district. Ninety nine per cent of these materials are recycled or reused in several ways. For example, clothing may be exported to developing countries and sold at markets to be re-worn, used for rags, cloths and soundproofing, or broken down so that fastenings, trimmings and fibres can be recycled and turned into new items.           

The Gloucestershire Recycles team has made a new clothes swap kit available as part of the campaign, containing clothes rails, hangers, signs and mirrors to make holding a pop-up swapping event easy. Contact waste@gloucestershire.gov.uk to find out more. A guide to running a successful clothes swap is available to download from the Gloucestershire Recycles website (www.gloucestershirerecycles.com/fashion) along with guides on how to undertake simple clothing repairs, washing tips to help clothes last longer and information about shopping more sustainably.  

Gloucestershire Recycles is supported by Gloucestershire County Council and the six local authorities in Gloucestershire, including Cotswold District Council.  

Throughout the month Cotswold District Council will be sharing information on its social media channels and highlighting the work of repair cafes in the district, many of which have volunteers available to fix broken zips and carry out other clothing repairs and alterations in return for a small donation, to give clothes a new lease of life. 

Second Hand September, which the Wear Not Waste campaign is timed to coincide with, was started by Oxfam in 2019.