Cumbria Clothing Collective is just ten months old, but it’s already made a great start towards its goal of reducing the amount of clothing waste generated in Cumbria.

Here’s a look at what the group has achieved since it was incorporated on 13th December 2024.

Spreading the word

The Collective launched its new website on 25th April 2025 and has developed a suite of materials to help get the message out about clothing re-use and waste, from posters and leaflets to presentations. It was all possible thanks to a £6500 grant from Futureproof Cumbria via the National Lottery Community Fund.

The group has been featured in Cumbrian media, including Radio Cumbria and local newspapers. 

Great Big Cumbria Clothes Swap

The Collective organised a clothes swap on 15th June 2025, attracting forty visitors and with 150 items swapped.

Events across the county

Other events have included:

• Photo exhibition at Cumbria Development Education Centre (CDEC) on 29th March 2025
• Taking part in the CDEC Cumbria Youth Climate Summit in June 2025
• Webinar in partnership with Futureproof Cumbria
• Taking part in Penrith Show with Cumbria Waste Management
• Sessions at Kendal College on 23rd January and 4th September 2025
• Presentations across the county, directly engaging with 1200 people

Fedback from the presentations and social media have demonstrated that people are taking the clothing waste issues seriously and are changing their habits – such as reviewing their wardrobe, re-using clothes, looking at caring for their clothes, mending and altering and using clothes swaps and charity shops before buying new. And, not buying as much online, where they are unsure regarding their returns policies.

Disposal of clothing

The Collective is spearheading a Charity Shop & Council Feasibility Study – working with two charity shops and the Cumbria Waste Management team to evaluate the opportunity to sort and reprocess textiles from charity shops, therefore reducing the volume of clothing being sent to the global south.

Partnering with charity shops

The Collective is working closely with a number of charity chops including Restore Cumbria, where they have introduced sewing workshops.  This has now been followed up by new sewing machines being introduced into their shops.

Restore are also part of the Charity Shop & Council Feasibility study in association with St Mary’s Hospice shops in Ulverston, St Mark’s Clothes Bank, Barrow and RSPCA, Westmorland.

Repair Directory

Work is under way on an interactive directory of all clothing alteration and repair companies in Cumbria.

This will be hosted on a council website and will be funded by Cumbria Waste Management services.

Working with councils

Through working with the waste teams in Westmorland and Furness Council and the central Cumbria waste management team, the Collective has ensured that textile waste is a key focus within the councils’ plans.

Thanks to this, the council has funded the Repair Directory, and invited the Collective to attend Penrith Show as part of the Waste Management teams activities and to drive the joint charity shop & council feasibility study.

The group will also now be part of the W&F Circular Economy Strategy.

The group has also reached out to Cumberland Council and has received very positive feedback from Councillor Helen Davies.

Political awareness

The Collective met with Markus Campbell-Saviors, Labour MP for Penrith & Solway, who is interested in raising two parliamentary questions. One is on why the UK is still shipping our waste textiles to the Global South. The other is about the online sellers Shein & Temu, and the possibility of the UK following the European stance on banning their advertising in the UK.

The group plans to also meet with the other Cumbrian MPs. 

Future plans

Cumbria Clothing Collective is teaming up with Restore to jointly host the REWEAR Revolution at Rheged, Penrith, in February 2026.

The event aims to encourage people to extend the life of their clothes through mending and repairing. 

The Collective is now in the process of looking for additional funding to continue our work into 2026.