Skip links

Championing garment workers to drive long-term sustainable change

Contact us
Garment and Textile Workers Trust

grant giving charity

Our Giving

The Garment and Textile Workers Trust is a grant giving charity

Our ambition is to use the funding available to enhance, extend and compliment the work of service providers, advocacy organisations and local charities in Leicester who share our in our ambitions of providing support, remedy and advocacy for workers across Leicester’s garment and textile industry.

For our first year, we have committed to closed giving

This means that rather than having open applications for funding, we have formed a contact group of local organisations who will help us deliver on our three key priorities for our first year.

Our initial priorities for targeted closed funding are as follows:

Provision of English Language training and education for garment workers

Advocacy support work to promote workers accessing and enforcing their rights

Donations to Food Banks situated in in the garment and textile district to help workers with the cost-of-living crisis

Our initial priorities for targeted closed funding are as follows:

Provision of English Language training and education for garment workers

The Trust has identified service providers of ESOL courses and will be providing funding to the following organisations to deliver this training:

  • XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
  • XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
  • XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Advocacy support work to promote workers accessing and enforcing their rights

In order to deliver on this priority, the Trust will be providing funding to XXX who will XXX

Donations to Food Banks situated in in the garment and textile district

In order to immediately help those struggling with the cost of living crisis, the Trust will be partnering with XXX to provide donations to food banks accessed by many garment workers.

How we help our our recipients

The Leicester Garment and Textile Trust delivers our charitable objectives through the provision of grants given to deserving organisations and charities who share our aims. In our initial round of funding, our support amounted to £343,000. Here is an insight into our recipients and how they are using our donations to help those in need:

FAB-L Highfield's Centre

FAB-L Highfield's centre was established in 1974 as a community centre to provide education, learning, development and advice services, in the heart of the vibrant and diverse community in Leicester.

In 2022, the Fashion Advice Bureau Leicester(FAB-L) was founded at Highfield centre, through the collaborative efforts of leading clothing brands, trade unions, and non-profit organisations.

FAB-L is committed to addressing workplace exploitation and societal inequalities within Leicester's garment and textile industry. Their focus is on tackling obstacles stemming from language barriers, poverty, unemployment, and a lack of state-funded social and welfare services, which mirror our own. A spokesperson for Highfields said: “The funding from GTWTrust is pivotal, as it supports FAB-L's operational costs and fully funds two new vital roles within our team: a part-time Eastern European speaking community engagement worker, and a full-time social welfare rights advice worker. We have already made a significant impact, empowering workers through workplace remediation services, provision of ESOL classes, and assistance with benefits, housing, and form filling.

“Over the last year, we managed to recover more than £100,000 in missing wages and supported hundreds of individuals facing various social, welfare, and housing challenges. With the continued support of GTWTrust, we aim to amplify our reach and impact in the coming year, continuing our journey of empowering and uplifting the people within Leicester's garment and textile industry”.

Recently, our grantee, Highfield centre - project FAB-L, arranged a collaborated employment fair alongside other grantees to showcase alternative employment opportunities for ex-garment workers who faced redundancies due to the closing down of their workplaces (garment factories). Many local employers displayed their current job vacancies and training to support the ex-garment workers in that event. As a result of this successful event, 40 ex-garment workers found alternative employment.

Wesley Hall

Wesley Hall is a busy centre located in the heart of the communities near the hub of garment factories, providing early years, mental health services, and educational services alongside community activities.

As well as running a food pantry to support local communities to cope with the rising cost of living, especially garment workers who are experiencing difficulties in challenging times. The centre also operated a community food bank for garment workers throughout lockdown, who found themselves in difficulty due to factory closures.
Wesley Hall strives to serve the diverse local community with the principle of equal opportunities. A spokesperson for Wesely Hall said: ”We are grateful to receive the grant from the Leicester Garment and Textiles Workers Trust as this will help Wesley Hall Community Centre to provide the much-needed provision during the cost-of-living crisis, to upgrade their skills, empower, educate, provide support and advocacy to the most vulnerable Eastern European, Black, and South Asian Minority Ethnic group.
Recently Wesley Hall has celebrated the first event of its kind, the 'Garment and Textile Worker's Achievements event', in which garment workers were nominated by their fellow workers and business owners for their services and achievements for awards working in the garment industry”

Shama Women's Centre

Shama women's centre Shama Women's centre was established 35 years ago by a group of local BAME women. The centre provides holistic culturally inclusive, support, educational activities, well-being, training, and empowerment to local women.

Shama Women's centre is a pioneering training program to empower garment and textile workers to represent themselves in the workplace, as well as offering free ESOL, workers' rights, and IT training for up to 48 weeks a year. “We are delighted to receive this grant from the Leicester Garment and Textiles Workers Trust as it will help Shama to provide the much-needed support to empower, educate, and skill some of the most vulnerable Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic women working in the garment industry to know their rights and achieve their full potential. Through this grant we have been able to provide sessions to improve their English, IT, and digital skills and better understand their rights as workers; helping them to progress in their careers”.

Our grantee Shama Women's center has launched a women's championship program to support the women working in the garment factories. Through this championship program, one woman from each factory has been nominated by their business owner and fellow women workers within the factories. These women are trained by the Shama Women's Centre about employment rights, and signposting fellow workers for welfare rights, legal advice, and domestic violence. 10 women are currently receiving training and making an impact within their workplaces.

Be part of our contact group

If you would like to be considered to be part of our contact group for the first year of grant giving and can compliment the delivery of our initial three key priorities, please fill out the contact form on our Contact Us page.

Contact us