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Sustainable Practices in the Textile and Fashion Industry (Distance Learning)

Overview

The fashion and textile industry is one of the largest sectors in the country and makes a significant contribution to the UK economy. However, its environmental footprint is substantial. Navigating sustainability regulation and initiatives can be a challenge for businesses of all sizes.

Developed in partnership with the UK Fashion and Textile Association (UKFT), this short course has been designed for professionals working in the fashion and textile industry and its supply chains who aim to improve their sustainable practices.

What you’ll learn

On this course, you’ll explore the concepts of sustainability in fashion and textiles and enhance your knowledge and understanding of sustainable processes and practices. You’ll examine strategies to improve sustainability in various aspects of textile processing such as yarn and fabric manufacturing, textile dyeing and finishing processes. 

We will introduce you to Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), which will enable you to evaluate the environmental impact associated with different textile and fashion products and processes throughout their entire lifecycle. You’ll learn how to use an LCA toolkit effectively and apply this knowledge to your own business practice. 

This award will give you 5 academic credits which could be used as Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL) towards future study. 

How you’ll learn

This short course is delivered 100% online and comprises approximately 50 hours of study.  

You will access all your teaching and learning materials, including content from the UKFT’s library, via Brightspace, our interactive Virtual Learning Environment.

About UKFT

UKFT is committed to delivering sustainable growth for the entire UK fashion and textile supply chain. UKFT brings together brands, designers, manufacturers, suppliers, educators and retailers to promote their businesses and industry, both in the UK and throughout the world.

UKFT’s activity is focused on five key areas: representation, international business, innovation and sustainability, skills and training, and UK manufacturing.

Discover more about Distance Learning at Huddersfield.

Entry requirements

BBB-BCC at A Level .

120-104 UCAS tariff points from a combination of Level 3 qualifications.

Merit in T Level .

DMM-MMM in BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma.

  • Access to Higher Education Diploma with 45 Level 3 credits at Merit or above.
  • 120-104 UCAS tariff points from International Baccalaureate qualifications.

This course is aimed at working professionals, we will accept 2 years relevant work experience in the subject area for non-standard entrants.

If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum of IELTS 6.0 overall with no element lower than 5.5, or equivalent. Read more about the University’s entry requirements for students outside of the UK on our International Entry Requirements page.

For further information please see the University's minimum entry requirements.

Course Detail

This course is taught over 1 year part-time. This course comprises approximately 50 hours of study. This may include guided independent study such as discussion boards, group discussions and live sessions, as well as independent study including asynchronous learning activities and recorded videos. Contact time with tutors is typically in small groups with peers and/or on a 1:1 basis. You’ll be supported throughout your studies by your module tutors and personal academic tutors

Teaching

Our Distance Learning courses have a range of start dates throughout the academic year, with assessments and examinations (if applicable) based on these. Start dates can be found on each course page. Information about University term dates including vacation dates are available here. Our Distance Learning courses are taught online so you have the flexibility to choose when and how you study. Unless it says otherwise in a module description, teaching on this course will be 100% online.

Feedback

Feedback (usually written) is normally provided on all coursework submissions within three term time weeks – unless the submission was made towards the end of the session in which case feedback would be available on request after the formal publication of results. Feedback on final results is available on request after the publication of results.

Progression

You may progress to the next stage of your course or research degree, subject to meeting University assessment criteria and professional, statutory or regulatory body guidelines.

As a Distance Learning student, you must provide and have access to the following IT equipment and facilities to access your Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) and to fully participate on your course.

  • Personal computer. Courses are designed for personal computers. Some content may not be fully accessible via mobile devices including but not limited to assessments and where there is a need install supplementary software on your personal computer.
  • Internet connection with sufficient bandwidth to allow video streaming (4Mps minimum).
  • Microphone and webcam.

Browser

Your course can be accessed using the latest versions of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, or Microsoft Edge. Full functionality cannot be guaranteed in older or less commonly used browsers. JavaScript must be enabled in your preferred browser.

Minimum Specifications

Your personal computer and webcam will require the following minimum specifications to access your course and study materials:

Hardware

  • Headphones, soundcard and speakers, microphone, and webcam. (If you are uncertain if your system meets the requirements, please check with the manufacturer or at the place of purchase).
  • Minimum Intel Core i5 (Minimum Dual Core 2 GHz) or AMD A10 or equivalent, 4GB of RAM (recommended 8 GB for better overall experience), with a screen resolution of at least 1280x800px.

Operating systems

  • Windows: Windows 10 or later. Mac: OS X 10.13 or later.
  • Linux: 64-bit Linux distribution of Ubuntu 16.04+LTS, Fedora 30+ Workstation, RHEL 8+ Workstation or CentOS 8+.
  • Android: OS 10, 11 or 12.
  • iOS: iOS13 or iOS14.

Internet connection

Our distance learning courses can be studied from any location, however we recommend a broadband/high speed connection of 10 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload speed. (If you are unsure if your internet connection speeds meet requirements, please speak with your internet service provider for clarification).

Other software requirements

  • Microsoft Teams, Adobe Creative Cloud and Office 365. Access to these applications will be provided to you as a University of Huddersfield student. Please note that some software, including Adobe Creative Cloud, will need to be downloaded and installed. You may be required to have full administrator rights to do this, which could be restricted if using an employer’s computer or shared device.

Mobile App

The University’s VLE, Brightspace, has a mobile Pulse app that can help students stay connected and on track with their course in Brightspace.The Pulse app only works with some core features of Brightspace. The Pulse app may not work on all Brightspace features. Third-party tools may not work as well. Mobile devices are not suitable for all courses, or some coursework. Users may need to complete some tasks on other non-mobile devices meeting the system requirements.

Costs

The costs of IT equipment and internet access are not included in the tuition fees and are your sole responsibility. For more information visit What’s included in your tuition fee? - University of Huddersfield

  1. The University of Huddersfield has been rated Gold in all three aspects of the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) 2023. We were the only university in Yorkshire and the Humber and the North West to achieve Gold ratings in all three aspects of the TEF among those announced in September 2023. In fact only 13 Universities, out of the 96 that were announced in September 2023, were Gold in all three ratings.

  2. Our teaching staff rank first in England for the proportion with higher degrees and teaching qualifications, as well as being top five for those holding doctorates (HESA 2025). So you’ll learn from some of the best, helping you to be the best.

  3. We are second in the country for National Teaching Fellowships, which mark the UK’s best lecturers in Higher Education, winning a total of 24 since 2008 (2025 data).

  4. We won the first Global Teaching Excellence Award, recognising the University’s commitment to world-class teaching and its success in developing students as independent learners and critical thinkers (Higher Education Academy, 2017).

Visit ‘Our experts’ page where you’ll find in-depth profiles of all our academic staff

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Important information

We will always try to deliver your course as described on this web page. However, sometimes we may have to make changes as set out below.

When you enrol as a student of the University, your study and time with us will be governed by our terms and conditions, Handbook of Regulations and associated policies. It is important that you familiarise yourself with these as you will be asked to agree to them when you join us as a student. You will find a guide to the key terms here, along with the Student Protection Plan.

Although we always try and ensure we deliver our courses as described, sometimes we may have to make changes for the following reasons:

Changes to a course you have applied for but are not yet enrolled on

If we propose to make a major change to a course that you are holding an offer for, then we will tell you as soon as possible so that you can decide whether to withdraw your application prior to enrolment. We may occasionally have to withdraw a course you have applied for or combine your programme with another programme if we consider this reasonably necessary to ensure a good student experience, for example if there are not enough applicants. Where this is the case we will notify you as soon as reasonably possible and if you are unhappy with the change we will discuss with you other suitable courses we can transfer your application to. If you do not wish to transfer to another course with us, you may cancel your application and we will refund you any deposits or fees you have paid to us.

Changes to your course after you enrol as a student

Changes to option modules Where your course allows you to choose modules from a range of options, we will review these each year and change them to reflect the expertise of our staff, current trends in research and as a result of student feedback or demand for certain modules. We will always ensure that you have an equivalent range of options to that advertised for the course. We will let you know in good time the options available for you to choose for the following year.

Major changes We will only make major changes to non-optional modules on a course if it is necessary for us to do so and provided such changes are reasonable. A major change is a change that substantially changes the outcomes, or a significant part of your course, such as the nature of the award or a substantial change to module content, teaching days (part time provision), type of delivery or assessment of the core curriculum. For example, it may be necessary to make a major change to reflect changes in the law or the requirements of the University’s regulators or a commissioning or accrediting body. We may also make changes to improve the course in response to student, examiners’ or other course evaluators’ feedback or to ensure you are being taught current best practice. Major changes may also be necessary because of circumstances outside our reasonable control, such as a key member of staff being unable to teach due to illness, where they have a particular specialism that can’t be adequately covered by other members of staff; or due to pandemics, other disasters (such as fire, flood or war) or changes made by the government.

Major changes would usually be made with effect from the next academic year, but may happen sooner in an emergency. We will notify you as soon as possible should we need to make a major change and will consult with affected groups of students and any changes would only be made in accordance with our regulations. If you reasonably believe that the proposed change will cause you detriment or hardship we will, if appropriate, work with you to try to reduce the adverse effect on you or find an appropriate solution. Where an appropriate solution cannot be found and you let us know before the change takes effect you can cancel your registration and withdraw from the University without liability to the University for any additional tuition fees. We will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring to another university if you wish to do so and you may be eligible for an exit award depending on how far through your course you are.

In exceptional circumstances, we may, for reasons outside of our control, be forced to discontinue or suspend your course. Where this is the case, a formal exit strategy will be followed in accordance with the student protection plan.

The Office for Students (OfS) is the principal regulator for the University.

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