By 
With GFW 2020 cancelled/postponed until further notice, and university runway shows also on hold, thousands of final year fashion students throughout the UK have been left without an outlet to show their final collections to the world.
However, all is not lost…
Several student/graduate led initiatives have quickly sprung up on Insta and Facebook, determined to unite universities and colleges, and provide a platform for final year work to be seen by the media, their peers and recruiters.
We spoke to Emily Tonge from Schools of Fashion, and Alex Hodgson and Billy Barrett from Fashion Class of 2020 to find out more…
SCHOOLS OF FASHION
EMILY TONGE is the Founder of Schools of Fashion. She’s a final year student at Manchester School of Art, specialising in womenswear and print.
Why did you decide to set up Schools of Fashion?
The initial idea behind Schools of Fashion was to unite fashion graduates across the country who felt their visibility had been taken away, with the cancellation of their graduate shows and Graduate Fashion Week. We want to create a student-led movement which allows graduates to still showcase their practise despite the setbacks of COVID-19. Although a digital presence is significant, a physical fashion show outcome for all students is what we’re striving for and is what we have worked towards over our university careers.
What is your ultimate aim?
We want all fashion graduates to have the opportunity to be able to exhibit their work, whether that be at their own university graduate show or selected for graduate fashion week events.
We aim to support other graduating fashion students, by sharing their work to raise visibility, help them campaign for their university graduate shows to be reinstated at a later date, and push for Graduate Fashion Week to offer us the opportunities that were granted to students in graduating years before us. It is so important that we have these opportunities to improve our portfolios, gain visibility in the industry, make connections with potential employers and kick-start our careers. Not to mention, be able to celebrate all our hard work.
Are you working on this independently or with a few friends?
I lead Schools of Fashion but am supported by another course mate, Natalie Burns.
Are your university tutors/staff involved, or is this a completely student-led project?
This has been entirely student-led and initiated, but we have been commended by our course for what we have been doing.
What are the next steps for the project? What are you working towards?
We are currently building up our presence and creating more visibility for fashion students online. We are also awaiting further information from Graduate Fashion Week, who we have been in contact with, on what they’re planning as an alternative to their usual events. Once we know their intentions, we can decide our course of action, which may include our own physical show platform.
If final year students want to get involved, what can they do to be part of this?
They can follow us on Instagram (@schoolsoffashion) and tag us in any work they would like us to share on our page, and we are also collaborating with a digital stylist, if they have any garments that they would like to be styled. They can also become part of our Facebook group, which already holds 650 verified final year fashion students from across the country; it’s been a great forum to share the challenges we are all facing at the end of our courses and to hear other students’ stories about how their universities are handling the current situation.
We really want students to use this as a platform to protest their visibility and join us in making our voices heard.
The letter on your insta bio – who was that sent to?
The letter written in the bio was written for students, who want to campaign against their universities decisions to cancel their shows – it was created as a template for them to use. We are hoping that students who do use it are able to reclaim their graduate shows and celebrate with their cohort once this situation has passed. The more students who protest this, the more likely we are going to see change.
If the letter wasn’t addressed to GFW, have you been in contact with them/what was their response?
We have been in direct conversation with GFW who have kindly explained to us that they are in the process of collecting information from all the universities and courses they support, to understand what kind of work students are creating in light of COVID 19 and what their universities are asking of their students. Due to the closure of universities, the majority of fashion courses have altered the final outcomes for their graduates. For example, some students are no longer expected to make any garments, and are instead asked to work solely on their portfolio – this is different for each course. Once they have collated all this data, they will inform us of their plans to support graduating fashion students, tailored to the work students are producing.
Is your university doing anything proactive to promote students whose shows have been cancelled? Are they offering any alternatives to a degree show?
At Manchester School of Art, they are currently working on our online platform, which we have been invited to help with. They have also committed to reinstating graduate degree shows at a later date, which is amazing news and we thank them for their support.
Are you aware that there are other student-led initiatives that have also been set up with a similar aim? How is Schools of Fashion different to this – do you have the same aim or are the projects slightly different?
Yes, we are, we have been in communication with them and support their work. We have similar aims, but we are more focused on building a brand that supports students by providing resources for them to campaign for the reinstatement of their shows, as well as creating visibility. If we are unsuccessful in achieving what we have been campaigning for (the reinstatement of grad shows and GFW opportunities) then we have discussed collaborating with them, to build our own student-led physical show. We are conscious about rushing into a process like that, we really want this to be a credible movement led by all students and we would want to consult the group we have built up. But ultimately, we really respect the work GFW does for graduating students and the connections in the industry they have, and we really hope they are successful in producing an alternative for us.
If students want to find out more, how should they contact you?
They are more than welcome to email any questions to me, Emily, at: schoolsoffashion@gmail.com
FASHION CLASS OF 2020
ALEXANDRA HODGSON and BILLY BARRETT are in their final year at UCA, and Founders of the Fashion Class of 2020 initiative.
They set up Fashion Class of 2020 shortly after the cancellation of GFW, with the aim of providing students with the opportunity to be seen by the media, peers, and industry professionals.
They run an instagram page (@fashionclassof2020), managed by Alex, which exhibits student’s work on a daily basis and they’re in the process of setting up an exhibition for the work of final year students (www.fashionclass2020.co.uk) organised by Billy.
Why did you decide to set up Fashion Class of 2020?
ALEX: I first decided to set up Fashion Class of 2020 after hearing about the cancellation of GFW. I was upset for a little while, but quickly decided that this was something we could turn around and make a positive. From there, I set up a website, Go Fund Me page, and an instagram account, and Billy and I joined forces from there.
BILLY: With the cancellation of GFW 2020 I was feeling devastated and unmotivated. I think fashion students across the country felt similarly and didn’t want the end of their studies to fizzle out, so we needed an end of year showcase to re-invigorate us whilst working from home.
What is your ultimate aim? What does the project involve?
ALEX: Currently, we are working on both a social media platform to showcase work, and a physical / digital event. Personally, I am building @fashionclassof2020 on instagram, sharing other students’ work, whilst Billy works on the event.
BILLY: Ideally a physical catwalk and display space for graduates’ work, bringing together industry experts and new talent, filling the void left by GFW
Are you working on this independently or with a few friends?
BILLY: Mostly independently but with support from university and peers. This project must be a team effort amongst students across the country and we need support from Industry to make it worthwhile.
ALEX: At the start, it was just me, with an idea which Billy helped bring to reality through his experience in event planning. From there I started the instagram page which has got a lot of attention from universities across the UK, doing their part to spread the word and offer help where they can.
Are your university tutors/staff involved, or is this a completely student led project?
BILLY: It’s our initiative but we liaise with staff.
ALEX: The UCA staff have always been supportive of students’ ideas and goals and this is no different.
What are the next steps for the project?
BILLY: Depending on what happens in the current climate/crisis, we will be amassing participants and guests, staff and Press; Finalising a suitable venue or platform, and putting the wheels in motion for the showcase.
ALEX: For the social media side of things, I aim to keep this going as long as possible and potentially branch out into other sectors.
What are you working towards?
BILLY: Providing a satisfactory showcase for this years’ fashion graduates.
ALEX: Along with the show, it would be amazing to create a platform that is widely known and brings recognition for the hard work of the fashion classes of 2020.
If final year students want to get involved, what can they do to be part of this?
BILLY: Registering their interest on our website and donating to our Go Fund Me page. Also, getting their friends and universities on board, and trying to get support from large organisations will really help with logistics.
ALEX: They can also submit their images and information to the @fashionclassof2020 page on instagram for their work to be shared.
Have you been in contact with the organisers of GFW? If so, what was their response?
BILLY: Somewhat, mostly leaving it up in the air.
Is your university doing anything proactive to promote students whose shows have been cancelled? Are they offering any alternatives to a degree show?
BILLY: They have been supporting our aim and offering alternative showcases, eg Show Studio competitions and GFW reposting students’ work
Are you aware that there are other student led initiatives that have also been set up with a similar aim? How are Fashion Class of 2020 different to this?
BILLY: Yes, we have been in contact with them, and will be working together to organise the showcase.
ALEX: We are also in talks of working together online too, maybe making some collaborative posts in the near future.
There is a Go Fund Me option on your site – what will donations for this be used for?
BILLY: To offset the cost of putting on the showcase.
If students want to find out more, how should they contact you (other than via insta @fashionclassof2020 and on the website)?
BILLY: Email is fine: billybarrett1@gmail.com
ALEX: Email: alexalicebusiness@gmail.com or through the DMs on instagram
FASHION CAREERS COUNSEL: At the time of writing, the organisers of GFW had posted an open letter to final year students on their website, expressing their sadness at having to cancel the event, but with the promise that they’re working hard behind the scenes and collaborating closely with universities and colleges to provide an alternative at some point in the future. They have also asked students to complete a contact form on their website, in order that they can stay in contact with students directly. We have asked GFW for comment, and will let you know once they get back to us…
