Partnership school uniform recycling scheme scoops national honour

A successful project in Denbighshire to recycle school uniform and support families in the county has earned Citizens Advice Denbighshire a national honour.

They picked up the Best Collaborative Working Award 2019 at the National Citizens Advice Conference, in recognition of the work carried out with the Council and local communities.

The project provides an opportunity for parents to donate any unwanted / outgrown uniforms in good condition so that it can be recycled and made available to other families for free or a donation at a recycle shop (donations will help cover the cost of washing the uniforms).  Numerous schools have taken part in the scheme since its launch in 2017.  These uniforms have been sold at pop-up shops located in a number of the main towns in Denbighshire.

The scheme has also been supported by Denbigh and Rhyl town councils and the Community Foundation Wales.  Citizens Advice Denbighshire has also provided vouchers for school uniforms for low income families, who don’t qualify for the school uniform grant, for children in Denbigh High School and Rhyl’s Christ the Word Catholic School. 

Lesley Powell, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice Denbighshire, said: “We were delighted to pick up this national award. It’s a great honour to be recognised for the work we do, and none of this could have been possible without the co-operation of Denbighshire County Council and the local community, as well as volunteers who run the pop up shops.

“We recognise that many families struggle with buying uniforms and we wanted to come up with an innovative and practical solution to help people access uniforms at prices they could afford.

“All the families attending the scheme are offered a follow up advice session to make sure everyone is claiming all their benefits, credits and grants”

Paul Barnes, Contracts and Performance Manager with the Council, said: “We are delighted to be working In partnership with Citizens Advice Denbighshire on this ground-breaking initiative, to make sure people can access services that help them out financially and practically. 

“This project has grown from strength to strength, with more schools coming on board each year offering high quality unwanted school uniforms and more pop-up shops appearing in various communities.  We look forward to developing the partnership further over the coming year and making sure that as many families as possible have access to this ground-breaking initiative”.

For more information on the location and opening times of the pop up shops visit www.denbighshire.gov.uk/school-uniform-recycle-scheme