Salvation Army collects record 18.9 tonnes of clothing at this year’s London Marathon
Melanie May | 13 May 2024 | News
A partnership between London Marathon Events and the Salvation Army Trading Company (SATCoL), to collect discarded participant clothing saw a record 18.9 tonnes collected at April’s TCS London Marathon.
Salvation Army volunteers and helpers collected clothing discarded by participants prior to the Start line on 21 April. The clothing was transported to the charity’s processing centre in the East Midlands for sorting and distribution to be resold, reused or recycled. The profits are donated to The Salvation Army.
The scheme is one of London Marathon Events’ new sustainability initiatives for 2024. These are aimed at reducing the environmental impact of its events, with a particular focus on lowering carbon emissions, cutting waste and improving circularity.
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Kate Chapman, London Marathon Events Head of Sustainability, said:
“The Salvation Army did an absolutely fantastic job at this year’s TCS London Marathon collecting a record 18.9 tonnes of clothing from the Start. They were organised and with their enthusiastic team of helpers ensured that all the unwanted clothing from participants was collected quickly. We are looking forward to working with SATCoL on many of our future events.”
The Salvation Army team will also be collecting clothing collections at the following events this year:
• Ford RideLondon on Sunday 26 May
• The Big Half on 1 September
• The Vitality London 10,000 on 22 September
• The Royal Parks Half on 13 October
In other news, SATCoL and partner Project B recently announced that they had come up with a way to turn polyester textiles back into raw materials, with plans for the first commercial-scale, post-consumer polyester recycling plant.
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.