An innovative scheme in the Highlands aims to recycle school uniforms and pass them onto other pupils.
The scheme will give every child and young person in Argyll free access to school uniforms, cutting bills of £100s for some parents.
Argyll and Bute Council has been working with churches and recycling organisations to roll out the plan across the region.
A spokeswoman for the local authority said: “Argyll and Bute Council has been working with its schools and third sector partners to roll out a new, innovative scheme that will see school uniforms that children have outgrown, either reused or recycled – saving peoples’ purse and the planet.
“The scheme will enable every child and young person to access a uniform, while contributing to the council’s vision of becoming a net zero carbon emissions organisation by 2045.”
Saving the purse and the planet
The scheme is already up and running in South Kintyre, Helensburgh and Lomond, Bute and Cowal, and Oban and Lorn.
Plans are currently underway to launch it in Mid Argyll, North Kintyre, Islay, Mull and Tiree before the end of the summer.
Councillor Ross Moreland, climate change and environment services spokesman, said: “The school uniform scheme is a great initiative. Many items of school clothing contain polyester, which is a petroleum-based material.
“Manufacturing this clothing in industrial units sends fumes into the atmosphere that damages our climate.
“By reusing uniforms that children have outgrown, it reduces this toxic process and helps to save our planet. It also helps to keep down outgoings for parents at a time when many people are struggling with the cost of living.”
For more information about the scheme, including how to donate uniforms and how get a pre-loved one, visit www.argyll-bute.gov.uk/school-uniform-scheme.
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