Mancs are being urged to help stop more than 16,000 tonnes of textiles from going to waste each year by donating their unwanted clothes.
After shocking new figures revealed that a whopping 16,700 tonnes of textiles was sadly put into Greater Manchester’s general waste bins within the last year, Greater Manchester Combined Authority(GMCA) has teamed up with Recycle for Greater Manchester (R4GM) to launch a bold new campaign called ‘Cotton On’ and work towards tackling the problem head on.
For the new campaign – which is aptly called ‘Cotton On’ – local residents are simply being encouraged to recycle their old, damaged, or unwanted clothes instead of throwing them away.
With the concept of ‘fast fashion’ still, unfortunately, going as strong as ever, it’s believed that each person in the UK chucks 35 items of clothing into the general waste every year on average – with old socks, ripped jeans, and stained t-shirts being some of the main culprits socks.
Your old clothes can have a new life. 👖👚
Even if they’re ripped or stained, they can be recycled at your local textiles bank. ♻️
While many people will consider parting ways with their unwanted clothes by donating them to charity or selling them online, GMCA and R4GM is keen for its new campaign to highlight the fact that damaged clothes and textiles can also be recycled, instead of thrown away.
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Greater Manchester already has a large existing network of textile banks, including at all of the region’s 20 recycling centres.
You can also find loads of others in supermarket carparks and large clothing stores too.
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All the textiles donated by residents are sorted here in Greater Manchester, and when the clothing is in a state of disrepair so much that it can’t be re-worn, this doesn’t mean it’s the end of the road, as the material is then recycled into something new like animal bedding, carpet underlay, and even things like car seats.
Mancs are being urged to donate their unwanted clothes to help stop 16,000 tonnes being thrown away / Credit: Crew | Maude Frederique Lavoie (via Unsplash)
Cllr Tom Ross, who is GMCA’s lead for Waste and Recycling, says that the thousands of tonnes of clothes thrown away each year is “damaging” to the region’s ambitions to be carbon neutral by 2038.
“Under Government plans, these extra carbon emissions will lead to increased costs for the GMCA and individual local authorities, so it’s great to see this campaign underway to raise awareness of what Greater Manchester residents can do with the unwanted or damaged clothes in their home.
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“It’s a fantastic example of what R4GM does to make recycling simple.”
Family pay tribute to father-of-two killed in Rochdale plane crash
Daisy Jackson
The family of a man killed in a light aircraft crash in Rochdale have paid tribute to a ‘deeply loving father and devoted husband’.
36-year-old Arian Abbasi was one of two men killed when an aircraft crashed into farmland in Littleborough in Rochdale last week, after travelling from Birmingham.
Emergency services rushed to the scene shortly after 11am on Tuesday 3 February, but sadly pronounced both men dead at the scene.
It’s believed there was no one else on board the aircraft, and there were no reported injuries on the ground.
Now, Arian’s family have issued a moving tribute to him. He was a pilot from Harrow in Greater London.
They described him as being a ‘deeply loving’ family man, whose passion was flying.
He was about to embark on a new chapter with a commercial airline in just a few weeks’ time.
His family said: “He lived his life for his family and friends, giving them his constant love, strength, and support.
“Flying was his passion, and he was on the brink of beginning an exciting new chapter with a commercial airline on 23 February; a dream he had worked toward with immense pride and determination.”
GMP investigations are now focused on finding part of the parachute system which contains propellant and hasn’t yet been located.
Finding the device has been ‘very difficult’ due to the nature of the terrain and the wide area over which it may have travelled.
It measures approximately 10 cm in diameter and 30 cm long and has a red anodised finish. It weighs less than 2 kg. It may have a silver metal collar attached at one end.
GMP said: “Please do not handle the device if you see it. If discovered, contact the police immediately via 101 or our Live Chat at gmp.police.uk, quoting log 1056 of 03/02/26.”
Homeless children in Greater Manchester will now get free bus travel to and from school
Emily Sergeant
Children who are currently living in temporary housing in Greater Manchester are set to get extra support with school travel.
In a move that was announced by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) at the end of last week, and following years of campaigning, homeless children living in temporary accommodation are now set to get free school travel on all Bee Network buses.
TfGM says it understands that some children end up a long way from their school when placed into temporary accommodation, and this leaves parents or carers with the difficult choice of either having to move them to a closer school, which ultimately disrupts their education, or having to pay unexpected travel costs.
While the Greater Manchester Strategy – which is the plan for the city region’s next decade – commits to reducing the number of families and children in temporary accommodation, and measures are also being taken to make sure residents have the support they need to ‘access, improve, and retain’ a decent, affordable home, this doesn’t tackle the immediate issue.
Homeless children in Greater Manchester will now get free school bus travel / Credit: TfGM
So, to help those families when they ‘need it most’, free bus travel to and from school is set to be provided, as subject to approval of this year’s Combined Authority budget.
The move comes after Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham asked TfGM last year to look at options to help with the cost of travel.
“Using our locally-controlled Bee Network buses to support families when they need it most is the right thing to do,” Andy Burnham commented.
Of course, the long-term solution is no kids in TA and we’re working with our councils to achieve this in the next few years.
We can do it because GM will soon hit the point where we are building more council and social homes every year than we’re losing through right-to-buy. 👍🏻
“A move into temporary accommodation is often a massive upheaval for families and can be a worrying time. With this measure, the cost of travel to school will be one less thing for families to worry about.
“It will mean parents and carers don’t have to choose between an extra demand on their household budget and keeping their children with friends and teachers they know and trust.”
Emily Sergeant -
27th August 2024 
