Recycling in schools
Have you thought about introducing more creative recycling ideas in schools to help kids become more engaged and knowledgeable about the importance of recycling for our planet?
No doubt your school or club has tried to introduce some form of recycling initiative at some point and these could include things like:
- Recycling paper points
- Recycling plastic bottles
- Recycling batteries and toner cartridges
- Recycling food by making a compost heap
But what about textiles recycling? Have you looked into recycling clothes, shoes and household textiles? Here are some very good reasons why it is time to get better creative recycling ideas in schools when it comes to fabrics.
According to a new study by LABFRESH in 2019, the UK was the 4th largest producer of textile waste in Europe. This means that on average, we throw away 1.7kg of clothing/fashion waste into landfill sites per person per year. We rank 3rd in the study for the highest spend on new clothes per year too.
Here are some shocking UK facts that came out of the 2019 study:
- We produce c.208,000 tonnes of textile waste every year in the UK.
- Out of the 3.1kg of textile waste each person produces every year, only 0.3kg are recycled and 0.4 kg are reused. 0.8kg are incinerated with a disappointing 1.7kg put into landfill sites.
- The average UK person spends £980.50 on new clothes every year.
- The fashion industry in the UK is the 3rd biggest in Europe with 3.1% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
So, what about other countries in the study?
- Fashion hub Italy is the least sustainable nation who throw away huge amounts of textiles; 465,925 tonnes of fashion waste are produced every year.
- Belgium produced the most waste at 14.8kg per person per year.
- Germany ranks 3rd in terms of annual export of pre-loved clothing with an impressive 6kg per person being sent overseas every year.
- With only 2.1kg per person, Spain produces the least amount of fashion and textiles waste.
- People in Austria spend a whopping £1.082,50 per person each year, on average.
Here at Kids Just Recycle, we have come up with one of the most creative recycling ideas in schools when it comes to clothing and household textiles recycling. Simply contact us and we will do the rest. Signing up for a Kids Just Recycle clothing bin is completely free of charge and we will design and personalise your bin in your school/club in colours, with your logo and strapline/motto. All you have to do is get your local community on board to donate as much unwanted clothing and household textiles as possible to help you reduce fashion and textile waste going into landfill. And the best bit is we will pay you £300 per tonne of reusable textiles so you can spend these much needed funds on school and community projects.
