Guest speakers Lorraine and Dave on the Preston Clothing Hub
Yesterday at Pascoe Vale Rotary, we welcomed guest speakers Lorraine and David from Northern Community CareWorks and learned about the Clothing Hub in Preston. The Hub is a joint initiative between Northern Community Careworks and Thread Together, which is an Australian charity that collects unsold and unworn clothing from fashion retailers, and redistributes them to people experiencing hardship.
David told us that in 2024, around 1.5 billion clothing items were sold, working out to about 55 items per person in Australia in one year!
Unbelievably, around 220,000 tonnes of unsold and unworn clothing typically ends up in landfill. It doesn’t matter if it’s a new with tags $700 jacket: it goes into the bin. Less than 5% of textiles in Australia are recycled 
We also learned about clothing poverty, and the impact it has on people and families doing it tough: people decline a job interview because they don’t have suitable clothes; no suitable clothing for court appearances; teens won’t attend their graduation; people fleeing family violence often have no clothing with them, and more.
At the Clothing Hub, the issue of clothing poverty and excess clothing is brought together. The Hub is stocked with clothes and shoes, and a client attends with their support worker by appointment.
To learn more about the Clothing Hub and how you can get involved, please visit
Thank you to Lorraine and David for visiting!