David Luke Schoolwear has been honoured with a Queen’s Award for Enterprise for Sustainable Development. The schoolwear manufacturer is one of 220 organisations nationally to be recognised with a prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise.

Announced on Tuesday 21 April, David Luke joins just 19 businesses in the UK to receive the royal seal of approval for excellence in Sustainable Development in this year’s awards roll-call.

Employing 54 people, David Luke was set up in 1982 by David Burgess and Adrian Luke specialising in the manufacture and supply of specialist schoolwear to independent retailers.

Over the years the business has demonstrated a progressive and highly respected reputation for innovation in sustainability. It was, for instance, the first schoolwear brand to develop Eco-uniform; blazers and other garments, made from recycled plastic bottles.

To date, the firm’s Eco-uniform range has prevented 34 million plastic bottles from going into landfill. It also makes up a substantial proportion of sales for the Ardwick-based business.

In 2016, David Burgess handed the business reins over to his daughter, Kathryn Shuttleworth.

This development also marked a period of dynamic change in the way sustainability was embraced as a company-wide strategic vision; not just a product-specific benefit.

Commenting on the award is David Luke’s MD, Kathryn Shuttleworth. “Sustainability is part of the DNA of our business. To have our efforts recognised with a Queen’s Awards for Enterprise is a pivotal moment in our company’s history.

“We have always been intently focused on the evolution of our Eco-uniform range. In this moment of global pause owing to the coronavirus pandemic, our vision for sustainable development is being reimagined and accelerated at a pace we never dreamt would be possible.

“Now is the time to put into practice measures such as closing the loop on our consumption of uniform. Also, encouraging families to make more conscious decisions about how they purchase uniform as a result of the wider issues surrounding supply. Sustainability and how it impacts our lives have never been more relevant.”

Queen’s Awards for Enterprise recognise and encourage the outstanding achievements of UK businesses in the fields of Innovation, International Trade, Sustainable Development and Promoting Opportunity.

The Queen’s Award panel note: “David Luke was awarded the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development because it had demonstrated a long-term commitment to sustainable improvements, specifically through the development of an eco-product (school uniforms) using recycled plastic to create the polyester content.”

Now in its 54th year, the Queen’s Awards for Enterprise are the most prestigious business awards in the country. Winning businesses can use the esteemed Queen’s Awards emblem for five years. David Luke will celebrate its award during a royal reception for Queen’s Awards winners later this year.

Click here for further information on David Luke and its Eco-uniform range.