School uniform reuse & recycling is green and saves money

17 Aug 2009

Parents in Wales are being urged not to throw away their children’s school uniform in a bid to save money and help the environment.

Waste Awareness Wales is encouraging parents to reuse or recycle uniforms and school sports kits and to hold clothes-swapping parties with friends instead of throwing them into the rubbish bin.

The average parent spends £5,203 on school uniform and sports kits over the 11 years their child is in school *1. However, only 39 per cent of us consider the environmental impact of throwing clothes away with only 16 per cent of discarded clothes being recycled or reused.*2

Owain Griffiths, spokesperson from Waste Awareness Wales, said: "It is often the case that, at the end of the year, children grow out of their school uniform and PE kit, and if there aren’t any younger siblings to pass the clothes down to, parents may automatically throw them away.

"Rather than sending the clothing to landfill, there are other options for getting rid of school uniforms without impacting on the environment. You could donate good quality clothes to a charity shop, sell them on or register them on Freecycle.co.uk which is an online community where members give away their unwanted items to others.

"If you fancy doing something a bit different, you could meet up with friends and hold a clothes-swapping party where you can give away your unwanted items and in return come away with a uniform that is the right size. You will not only be helping other parents but also be helping to restock your children’s wardrobes without spending money on new clothes.

"If the clothing is worn out and can’t be reused, there are still other options instead of throwing them away. Textile waste is a valuable resource and can be taken to clothing banks, respun into new fabric or recycled and used for filling materials or cleaning cloths.

"We all need to get in the habit of playing our part environmentally by reducing, reusing and recycling our waste, and if it has financial benefits then it is an even bigger bonus."

*1 Figures released by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR)

*2 Figures released by Recycle Now