Andrew Mitchell MP has visited the Royal Town’s Oxfam charity shop on the Parade to support Oxfam’s Second Hand September campaign.

The campaign aims to raise awareness of the environmental benefits of giving clothes a longer life, while helping beat poverty around the world by providing vital funds for the charity.

The campaign has seen thousands of people pledge to only buy second hand clothing for the month of September.

Fast fashion is increasing demand for the textile industry, which accounts for approximately 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and an average consumer throws out 31.75kg of clothing every year. If these clothes were donated or recycled instead of going to landfill, they could save the same greenhouse gas emissions as driving a car for about 800,000 miles. Extending the life of individual items of clothing by an extra 9 months can reduces someone’s carbon, water and waste footprint by as much as 20-30%.

Andrew Mitchell MP said:

“Second hand September is an excellent initiative and I enjoyed speaking to the team at our local Oxfam shop about their work which not only saves a lot of clothes and homeware from landfill but also raises crucial funds for Oxfam’s charitable work around the world. Approximately £29m is raised each year from selling clothing in Oxfam shops.”