Another Policy Win for Fashion Roundtable: Erasmus + Back for UK in 2027
A GOOD NEWS STORY. Students, Apprentices and Young People will soon be able to study and work in the EU again by Tamara Cincik
As soon as the UK government agreed to return to the Horizon Europe programme which opens up academic and research partnerships across the UK and EU with incredible impact across innovation and pan-European collaboration, I was delighted, but keen to also ensure that we also reintroduced the Erasmus + programme, which allows UK graduates to take up important entry level roles in Europe. Policy doesn’t happen in isolation, and it takes years sometimes longer, for ideas to become the narrative that shifts the tide. But the buzz of a policy win, however long the road to its fruition is, remains. I am so pleased to see common sense prevail. OF COURSE it is better for our young people to be able to live, work and experience life in the EU. Both as a personal experience, but also to boost their career opportunities.
Since the UK left the EU, I have been told the same story by countless talented UK fashion students, who cannot take up roles in Paris or Milan, because of the lack of a reciprocal agreement between the UK and EU. This goes some way to solve that problem. Not as much as a return to pre-Brexit freedom of movement of course, but it does at least mean their applications for these roles now won’t be categorically rejected. Award winning designer Phoebe English, who is leading the vanguard in sustainability across her studio, brand and vision, told me that being part of an Erasmus + scheme programme changed her life. It’s impact cannot therefore be under valued and I am thrilled that the UK government has taken the decision to work with our EU partners and reintroduce the scheme.
In December last year when the agreement was announced I shared the good news with our readers:-
This decision this week by the UK government to return to the Erasmus+ Programme is a massive win for Fashion Roundtable and likeminded allies who have been advocating for this since the UK left the EU.
Now the UK and EU have ratified the agreement, Skills Minister Jacqui Smith said: “From learning a language to building confidence and work experience, Erasmus+ offers transformative opportunities to enhance young people’s life chances.” Quite.
Back in 2018 I interviewed designer Ashish and “though the discussion we begin to build a picture of a way forward in which the Government can support our unique fashion industry. And that’s where Fashion Roundtable, through manifestos that propose a way forward, make Ashish’s and many other fashion industry works voices heard, so the Government can make sure the UK is the best place for the fashion industry.” Fashion is a famously challenging and competitive industry, and certainly my experience as a stylist was I needed to be geographically mobile, to both be relevant, but also pay the bills. I paid my taxes in the UK but most of my work was overseas, so much here was for free - see the Plum Sykes story about this exploding on the Guardian here. But I digress. Listen to my conversation “Fashion is a Global Conversation” with Ashish, his voice is like velvet, and he unpicks just why working across borders is vital both for creativity and also your cv.
Image: The cover of the ‘Fashion’s Future: How Brexit Has Reshaped The Fashion Industry And How To Reposition The UK As An Industry Leader’ report
By Alix Coombs
The UK fashion industry has faced significant disruption in the wake of Brexit, from customs barriers and administrative burdens to talent shortages and declining sales. As businesses continue to adapt to the new post-Brexit reality, Fashion Roundtable has published an in-depth report titled ‘Fashion’s Future: How Brexit Has Reshaped The Fashion Industry And How To Reposition The UK As An Industry Leader’, which outlines the industry’s most pressing challenges and offers policy recommendations for recovery and growth.
Before the General Election in July 2024, we created our “Delivering a Sector Vision” report, which highlighted and explained our wish-list for the creative growth, regional and national potential of the fashion and textiles industry. Rereading that now, as I write this, I am both pleased to see our advocacy for a return to Erasmus + has landed, but also acutely aware that we still have some way to go to ensure the rest of our recommendations, all of which I still stand by, are also implemented.