Over 200 children to receive wet weather clothing
Thank you! Thanks to the support of everyone who liked, shared and donated to our Crowdfunder campaign last year, 7 primary schools across the UK have each received 30 sets of wet weather clothing this week.
Launched in partnership with Semble on Outdoor Classroom Day last November, our campaign succeeded in raising over £6,000 to help tackle clothing poverty in some of the most underprivileged areas of the UK.
The sets of waterproof jackets, trousers and wellies supplied from Muddy Puddles – who generously offered a 50% discount on all clothing – are also built to last, meaning that these wet weather clothing libraries could be used by over 1,000 children over the next 5 years.
With 4.2 million children living in poverty in the UK prior to the pandemic, kitting children out in wet weather clothing is simply unaffordable for many families across the country, and it is likely that the pandemic has made this situation even worse.
But one of the main barriers to schools taking children outside more often is a lack of appropriate clothing: over half of UK teachers (57%) think that schools would go outdoors more if children had access to winter coats, wellies and waterproofs.
For Naz Khan, whose school – Broadwater Primary in Tooting – is one of the recipients of a wet weather clothing library, the difference that it will make is clear:
We are extremely fortunate to have a vast outdoor space in our school, but a large majority of our children are from disadvantaged families who cannot provide their children with the appropriate outdoor clothing and footwear.
The waterproof clothing will allow the children to access the outdoor learning environment in all weathers, especially during the winter months. They can learn and explore freely and independently, and enjoy the effects of the weather on the environment.
When it rains there are puddles, and where there are puddles there are children jumping in puddles! I am positive that the waterproof clothing will bring a lot of smiles on a lot of faces.
We want every child across the UK to be able to enjoy time outdoors, whatever the weather. That’s why we’ll be launching another Crowdfunder this autumn, to help kit out more of the nation’s children, get them outdoors and to continue the wider conversation about how we make high-quality clothing accessible to all children. Watch this space!
