London Waste and Recycling Board (LWARB) aims to create solutions to increase the re-use and recycling of textiles such as clothing, carpets and mattresses in London. Around 200,000 tonnes of textiles currently go to landfill in London every year. Reducing the burden on the capital’s landfill sites, increasing textile reuse and recycling will also help to grow London’s economy by creating jobs and volunteering/training opportunities and have a positive monetary impact on the public purse.

LWARB launched the Textile Reuse and Recycling Fund for members of the London Textile Forum in 2013. So far funding of around £185,000 has been awarded to six recycling organisations to boost the reuse and recycling of clothing and other textiles in the capital. Each project is awarded grants from £8,300 to £55,000. The projects funded so far will help provide new and innovative solutions.

Among the projects to which LWARB has awarded grant funding is the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP), which will produce behaviour change communications for clothing and non-clothing. Meanwhile, textile collector and reprocessor Lawrence M Barry is to use funds to set up a kerbside clothing recycling service for some London residents.

Community interest firm Wastebuster has been given funding to set up a corporate textile recycling and rewards scheme, which will work with businesses to develop a volunteer programme for delivery of textiles education in schools to increase recycling.

These six projects will divert in the region of 3,500 tonnes of end of life clothing and other textiles from landfill or incineration over the next 12 months.