Repair scheme for clothes and shoes to be piloted next year, Government confirms

There is growing demand for seamstresses and tailors to do alterations to clothes. File picture: Chani Anderson

It is hoped a pilot repair scheme for clothing will encourage services and skills to cater for what has been called a “growing” demand.

The Department of the Environment confirmed a voucher repair scheme for clothes and shoes is to be piloted next year.

The initiative is part of an EU directive that requires an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme for textiles.

It will mean clothes shops and other textile producers will have to fund the cost of collecting and managing used clothing and ensure they are made available for reuse where possible.

Eddie Shanahan, chairperson of the Council of Irish Fashion Designers, said consultations on the EPR scheme close on September 9, and consideration will be given to submissions before the Irish legislation is drafted.

He said the details of how such schemes would operate were still being ironed out, but would require designers to register and contribute a fee towards a licence, which would then be used to promote circularity and support units around the country.

He said the voucher repair scheme could come in the form of a person getting a voucher, with the repairer then claiming money back from the voucher.

“The voucher scheme, I would imagine, is designed to encourage people to set up services around mend and repair,” he said.

“They are significantly less than they were 20-40 years ago.” 

An EPA report from 2025 concluded there were no courses on the repair of shoes or leather goods in Ireland, while a separate EPA survey noted demand in Ireland for repair skills from both professionals and laypersons.

Mr Shanahan said Irish designers “absolutely” welcome the promotion of mending clothes and said he hoped the strategy would encourage people to invest in good-quality pieces.

“If you buy less, if you buy better, if you repair along the way, you get more wears from the garment, you get more value out of it.

You don’t need to go out and buy every Friday because you washed the previous one and it disappeared down the plug hole.

Heidi Higgins teaches a fashion design course for Laois and Offaly ETB, a sewing class as part of a community educational course, and hosts sewing retreats in Co Tipperary.

“The new voucher scheme that’s coming in, I think is great, but I’ve been harping on so much about the importance of skill base that we need here,” she said.

“I keep saying there’s going to be so many jobs in sewing.

“We’re not really short on designers, we’re short on seamstresses, tailors, people who want to do alterations, and we’ve seen a huge growing demand for that.

“I’d love to see these skills come back into play more. There is a whole ecosystem that can be created from this.”