City’s communities spotlight sustainable fashion
Communities in Brighton & Hove will be shining a spotlight on the power of repair and reuse at this year’s Sustainable Fashion Week, from 23 to 29 September.
More than 2,500 local people took part in last year’s activities and this year promises to be even better. A free flagship event on Saturday 28 September at Brighton Dome features a marketplace of local sustainable fashion brands, a clothes swap, mending and upcycling workshops, sustainable styling sessions and three sustainable fashion runway shows with local designers and fashion students.
Events have been made as accessible as possible, with low-cost and pay-what-you-can options.
Easy, affordable and sustainable
The interest in sustainable fashion has been boosted by the growth of online sites making it easy and affordable to buy and sell quality second-hand clothes. Many retailers also now offer clothing donation banks in-store, all of which helps to keep clothes in circulation for longer.
Sustainable Fashion Week Brighton Hub is part-funded by the UK government and Brighton & Hove City Council through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. The funding has helped support greater community outreach.
Councillor Tim Rowkins, Cabinet member for Net Zero and Environmental Services, said: “The fashion industry produces around 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and around £140 million worth of clothing is sent to landfill in the UK every year.* Here in the UK, we buy more clothes per person than any other country in Europe.**
“Extending the life of the clothes already in circulation through reuse and repair can make a big difference, and if items are in clean but not useable condition, they can be recycled in one of our 116 textiles recycling banks for unwanted clothing, textiles and shoes around the city.”
The council’s contractor collected more than 257 tonnes of textiles and shoes for recycling in 2023/24.
Keeping clothes in circulation for longer
Councillor Rowkins added: “As well as Sustainable Fashion Week, recent initiatives here in Brighton & Hove include the opening of two different Charity Super.Mkt stores in Churchill Square, and Smarter Uniforms online marketplace for second-hand school uniforms.”
Sustainable Fashion Week Brighton Hub is organised by Brighton Fashion Collective and supported by headline partner LUSH.
Hayley Franco, co-organiser of Brighton Fashion Collective and trustee at Brighton Peace & Environment Centre, said: “We hope to reach thousands of local people with our events and give them the opportunity to learn how to repair their clothes, support local designers, makers and menders across the city, and approach fashion more sustainably!”
**Environmental Audit Committee 2019
Photo: Si Mitchell
More information
Find the full programme for Sustainable Fashion Week Brighton Hub on the Brighton Fashion Collective website.
See other projects supported through the Shared Prosperity Fund on our website.
Sustainable Fashion Week Brighton Hub is part of Sustainable Fashion Week UK.
Charity Super.Mkt is the UK’s first shop space bringing multiple charities selling quality, second-hand clothing under one roof. It is a joint venture between Wayne Hemingway MBE, founder of British fashion brand Red or Dead, and Marie Chenoweth, CEO of sustainable clothing charity TRAID. Find out more about the 2 stores in Churchill Square on the Charity Super.Mkt website.
Smarter Uniforms has an online marketplace where families can buy and sell pre-loved school uniforms. Users of the marketplace can also choose to donate some of the income from the items they sell to local schools. Find more information about Smarter Uniforms on their website.