easyJet to turn retired crew uniforms into Luton school clothes

easyJet will recycle thousands of retired crew uniforms into school clothing for pupils in Luton as part of a new programme timed with a crew uniform refresh due in November. The airline has partnered with the Luton-based charity Level Trust, which runs a Uniform Exchange across about 75 local schools, and plans to repurpose donated shirts, skirts, blazers, jackets and trousers for older year students in the town.

The move responds to research conducted for the airline that found 58 percent of 2,000 parents polled feel the pressure of rising school uniform costs. The survey reported parents spend an average of about 256 pounds a year on uniform items for one child, adding up to roughly 3,072 pounds across 12 years of education. More than a third of respondents said they had sacrificed household essentials to meet those costs, 19 percent had used overdrafts or credit cards to afford uniforms, and 53 percent reported buying replacement items before the end of the first term.

Michael Brown, director of cabin services at easyJet, said, Were proud to launch the uniform recycling programme our aim for this first phase is both to support parents who are facing financial hardships as...