Textiles are the second most polluting industry in the world, and there are approximately 18,000 tonnes of textiles disposed of as rubbish across West London each year or 300,000 tonnes nationally.
Textile waste results in over 5% of the UK's annual carbon and water footprint - of these disposed of textiles, only 16% are reused.
Our goal is to empower residents to treat unwanted textiles as a valuable resource.
We can collect old clothing, shoes and textiles weekly on your scheduled collection day
Please place these items in a clearly marked plastic bag, alongside your recycling boxes.
What we can recycle
- Bags
- Blankets
- Clothes
- Curtains
- Duvet covers
- Pillow cases
- Socks
- Shoes/trainers (pairs only)
- Sheets
What we can't recycle
- Duvets
- Pillows
What happens to the collected textiles?
Once collected, textiles are sent to a re-processing site where they are sorted into different grades. These include:
- Clothes for sale in charity shops
- Clothes for export
- Rags
- Felt
TRAID - Home Collections
Hounslow Council has partnered with fashion charity TRAID to offer a free collection service to all households, helping to reuse and recycle clothing and shoes.
Textiles are the second most polluting industry in the world, and there are approximately 18,000 tonnes of textiles disposed of as rubbish across west London each year, or 300,000 tonnes nationally.
Booking a free home collection is simple and easy to do, and helps to keep our clothes in circulation for longer.
Residents can book a slot online or by phone (020 8733 2595) and the unwanted items will be collected from the doorstep (this applies to households that are kerbside and in flat blocks).
TRAID will collect clothes, paired shoes, accessories, jewellery, and linen such as curtains, but they will not be able to collect duvets or pillows.#
Salvation Army Textile Banks
Hounslow Council has partnered with The Salvation Army to deliver 16 textile recycling banks across the Borough, giving residents more opportunities to recycling their textiles.
