You’ve heard of long-life milk. But how about long-life clothes?

Challenging the throwaway fashion trend, designers are being called on to create clothes that are wearable for longer in a new sustainable fashion award.

The SCAP Extending the Life of Clothes Design Awards is set up by Government-backed waste body WRAP.

The body recently found stretching the “active life” of clothes by just nine months could slash the carbon, water and waste footprints by 20-30% each.

Marcus Gover, WRAP Director and ELC Awards judge said: “We need the sector to embrace this new approach to designing clothes.”

He added: “This is a great opportunity for designers to bring this issue to life. By applying their creativity and innovation to either sourcing or developing low impact, high quality fibres and engineering garments that will last longer, they can instigate real change.”

The judging panel includes: London College of Fashion lecturer Amanda Johnston, who is also Curator at the Sustainable Angle; Colin Thompson, Designer and Academic Programme Leader for Fashion Studies at the University of Derby and Clare Southworth, Head of Sustainable Products at Defra.

All interested applicants must register by 12 November 2014.