Threads That Bind: Children, Polyester Uniforms, and Systemic Risk

Across the UK, more than eight million children wear school uniforms made predominantly from polyester for around 200 days each year. While this fibre is widely used for its durability and low cost, growing evidence reveals profound and interconnected risks that extend from individual children’s health to global environmental systems. Recent studies show polyester garments can release thousands to millions of microfibres per wash, with the highest shedding during the first few washes. These microfibres are now found in human lungs, blood, and placental tissue, signalling a troubling exposure pathway. Simultaneously, many school uniforms are coated with stain repellents, flame retardants, and anti-crease finishes—chemical additives that are often poorly regulated and associated with endocrine disruption, reproductive harm, and developmental toxicity.

Using complex systems thinking and CRSD’s co-creation laboratory methods, this research will map the full lifecycle of UK school uniforms—from design and procurement to use, washing, and end-of-life—and examine how each stage contributes to cumulative microfibre shedding and chemical exposure. It will integrate evidence from life-cycle assessments, public health studies, supply chain reports, and trade data with insights from multi-stakeholder co-creation labs. These labs will bring together parents, schools, suppliers, regulators, and public health experts to identify system bottlenecks, align incentives, and design practical interventions. By reframing school uniforms as a public health and environmental governance challenge, this project will build the evidence, coalitions, and tools needed to reduce children’s exposure to harmful synthetics and create a safer, more sustainable system.