22 September 2025

Connecting communities for fair, sustainable fashion

Slow Fashion Week (22 to 27 September), organised by Brighton Fashion Collective, will be showcasing sustainable alternatives and different approaches to fast fashion, from independent makers through to established brands.

This year’s programme takes place throughout the city and features a diverse range of activities including panel discussions, drop-in workshops, and 3 runway shows from local designers, makers, and students.

It finishes with a flagship event on Saturday 27 September at Brighton Dome with a sustainable marketplace, a giant clothes swap, and a creative studio space where you can learn new sewing, repair, and embroidery skills.

Inclusive and creative

Slow Fashion Week is open to everyone. Tickets start at just £5, with tiered pricing available to provide access to all members of the community.

Councillor Tim Rowkins, Deputy Leader and Cabinet member for Net Zero & Environmental Services, said: “The impact of fast fashion and textile waste on the UK and around the world is enormous. Water use alone is massive; the water needed to make one pair of jeans could meet the daily drinking needs of nearly 5,000 people.*

“This event shows there is a viable alternative, connecting the incredible creativity of people in the city to re-imagine and re-use textiles and develop sustainable fashion alternatives.

“Our region really is leading the way on sustainable fashion with the Brighton Fashion Collective providing community events year-round and fantastic support from a range of partners in the city and beyond.”

Find more information and book tickets on the Slow Fashion Week 2025 website

Repair, reuse, repurpose

On average, each person in the UK throws 35 items of unwanted textiles straight into general waste every year - the equivalent of almost 30,000 shipping containers full of cast-off fashion and home textiles items a year.**

Textiles can be repurposed and re-used from upcycling your stuff or swapping events, to donating at charity shops, re-selling online or giving away for free on platforms like Freegle.

The Scrap Space – a community creative reuse hub – is opening a new space this week in Brighton too. The Scrap Space at Community Base, Queens Road will be run by the non-profit organization Over the Moon. The initiative accepts donations of clean, non-hazardous waste materials from businesses and individuals and redistributes them at low cost for use in art, craft, play, theatre, and DIY projects.