An environmental charity based in Lyme Regis has launched a new ethical clothing campaign to raise much-needed funds to plant trees.

The Word Forest Organisation is urging people to invest in its sustainable merchandise as part of the #TreeMendUs campaign.

It is hoping to raise funds to continue its work planting trees in rural Kenya. A tree will be planted for every product sold.

Simon West, chairman of trustees, said: “The charity has risen to the challenges of 2020, and thanks to our talented volunteers working remotely all over the country, we now have a wonderful set of ethical products.

“For every product sold we will plant a tree. We need your support and our planet needs your support.”

Tracey West, CEO, said: “We would like to see people invest in these pieces for the long term which will enable us to invest in the health and wellbeing of our planet and its people.

“Our organic cotton tee shirts are amazing; cherish them, wear them and mend them until the end of their lives. Then, send them back to our suppliers at Teemill and they’ll turn them into another tee shirt, called a remill!”

Charity bosses said the tree planters the organisation works with in rural Kenya are living on the front line of climate change, and that the trees are a vital lifeline, providing food, medicine and other resources.

The clothing appeal has been launched after research by Fashion Retail Academy revealed there has been a shift in shopping habits in the UK, with 51.4 per cent of people now choosing long-lasting clothes over cheaper fashionable items.

The charity said its clothing range offered a ‘slow fashion’ alternative to the ‘fast fashion’ industry they say has had a devastating effect on the environment.

Visit WordForest.org/shop to purchase merchandise and raise funds.