Students work with Great British Sewing Bee star on sustainable banners for the Design for Planet Festival

BBC Great British Sewing Bee judge Patrick Grant gave students’ sustainable textile designs the seal of approval when he visited Manchester Met for the Design Council’s Design for Planet Festival to open a display of banners crafted by students using offcuts from his ethical campaigning clothes brand, Community Clothing. 

The textile, fashion and graphic students repurposed over 40 boxes of surplus-to-requirement fabric from the designer and TV star’s Community Clothing brand, creating eight large-scale banners with eco design messages at their heart to hang as an installation to open the Design Council’s Design for Planet Festival.

Each three metres in size, the banners hang spectacularly in the newly named Lowry Building stairwell and reflect the ethos of Grant’s sustainable, locally crafted campaigning clothes brand which matches Manchester Met’s commitment as one of the UK’s leading universities for sustainability.

Working with the high-quality Community Clothing offcuts, students from the University’s Manchester School of Art were tasked with designing and creating the banners to be showcased at the Design Council’s Design for Planet Festival 2024, which this year took place at Manchester Metropolitan University.

As the keynote speaker alongside a host of design industry leaders, Andy Burnham and Manchester Met researchers, Grant met the students from programmes including Textiles, Graphics and Fashion, admiring their handiwork and zero waste messaging.

With a letter combination spelling ‘radical thought space’ and individual designs responding to the theme of ‘planet positive’, the banners were designed and individually pieced together from eclectic fabric offcuts, then pinned and hand stitched.

Third year Textiles in Practice student Martha Lawton said: “My banner took inspiration from ‘tumbling blocks’, a geometric pattern that has been repeated throughout generations and, to us, symbolised longevity.

“We created our own repeatable pattern made purely from the shapes of the fabric scraps. Our banner proves that what we consider to be waste can be repurposed into something as equally durable as the garments Community Clothing make. 

“It was great to recycle such high-quality fabrics to make a statement about sustainability, and such a treat to meet Patrick and the Design Council in person.”

Other student banner designs included a nod to the font style of historical textile banners, an umbrella and child motif to represent safeguarding the future, and oversized footprints in reference to the fashion industry’s global footprint.

Shelley McNulty, Head of Design at Manchester School of Art, added: “We were thrilled to partner with Patrick and his Community Clothing brand who are just as passionate about sustainability and circular economies as we are here at Manchester Met. 

“Our students worked hard on these inspiring designs which look fantastic hanging in our Lowry Building, and which were admired by so many important delegates at the Design Council’s Design for Planet conference.

“This way of collaborative manual working echoes historical banner making and involves time, patience and skill – something that design Manchester School of Art has long been a part of, with its historical roots going back to 1838. 

“It has been an inspiring and important project for students to be a part of, and great to work with Patrick, Community Clothing and the Design Council to help empower the next generation of designers with the skills they need to address the climate crisis.”

Patrick Grant added: “If we don’t understand quality ourselves, then we cannot make good choices. We have to teach craft – textiles, pottery, metal work – projects like this, and students such as these at Manchester Met are key examples of this.”

Senior Lecturer Rowanna Lacey Ewings from BA Textiles in Practice, who led the banners project said: “When I was developing the brief for the project, I really wanted to create a space that would not only showcase the students’ responses but also challenge and provoke the Design for Planet delegates and speakers, providing a ‘space’ to allow for ‘radical thought’.  

“I was thrilled to hear the word ‘radical’ at several points throughout the day from various speakers. The whole project has been incredible to work on, with powerful yet positive messages from our students coming through the banners.  I’d like to thank Liz Silvester, Lecturer from BA Fashion Art Direction for her huge support on this project and Shelley McNulty for the opportunity and, of course, Patrick Grant and the Community Clothing Team for their unending enthusiasm.” 

The banners were displayed in the Lowry Building at Manchester Met as it hosted the Design Council’s Design for Planet 2024 conference, at which delegates heard from leading voices in sustainable design. 

Opened by Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester and Minnie Moll, Chief Executive of the Design Council - in partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University - the festival highlights the city’s rich urban and industrial design history.

This latest collaboration with Grant’s Community Clothing follows other recent student sustainability successes including a BA (Hons) Fashion and Business Management graduate’s sustainable luxury handbag brand, and another graduate from the same course collaborating with Birmingham Children’s Hospital on a sustainable hospital gown.