The Deptford Ravens Unveils New Kit Celebrating Community, Sustainability and Ethical Practices

Community

Designed by our club founder, Alice Devine, the kit pays homage to the diverse and vibrant community of Deptford. "Many of the players have grown up here, and it was important for us to create a kit that reflects and celebrates our home and rich diversity," explains Alice. “We wanted to capture our beloved Deptford High Street with its independent shops representing the blend of nationalities that make Deptford our home.”

In a bold decision, we opted to forego traditional sponsorship to ensure our kit aligned with our values. Given the financial situation of the UK, and because we have over 100 members requiring kit, we didn’t want to ask the local community for sponsorship, and as some of the Ravens are sober, we chose not to seek sponsorship from alcoholic beverage companies which often sponsor football kits. Instead, thanks to funding from a local community fund from Lewisham Local, we've kept our kits affordable while offering support for those in need.

Photographs of the kit include illustrations of the DLR, Furniture and Decorations Town Ltd, Terry's Discount, Deptford Arms, Soda, Viet Rest, Lai Loi, Tropical Islands Super Foods, Pie House, The Waiting Room, TT's breakfast, Deptford Church, Sue Godfrey's Nature Reserve, The Deptford Creek, Café Bianca, Rose African Fabrics and many more.   

Sustainability

We prioritised selecting a sustainable kit. By forgoing sponsorship, we avoid the need for multiple kit productions, ensuring longevity for our beloved design. Crafted from the material EcoKit, made from recycled plastic bottles, our kit has saved 1,288 bottles from landfill, significantly reducing plastic pollution.

Our Kit Team meticulously evaluated kit suppliers to ensure we chose one aligned with our values. Securing a sustainable kit has been surprisingly challenging given there are numerous terms like 'Net Zero,' 'Zero Carbon,' and 'Carbon Neutral,' each with nuanced meanings. Many companies claim to be 'eco,' but discerning genuine sustainability efforts from greenwashing can be difficult unless you work in sustainability, and even then it's hard!

We partnered with the kit supplier Scimitar for a variety of reasons, with the primary reason being they are rigorously audited by external company Sedex, a leading social organisation who do SMETA audits. This ensures that our kits are produced under fair labour practices and ethical standards. Ensuring there's no slavery or poor working conditions along the supply chain is crucial. An acclaimed external auditor is required to validate these efforts. As a women’s and non-binary team, it was important for us to choose a kit that supports the lives of women across the globe. 

Additionally, Scimitar’s ISO 14001 certification further underscores its commitment to environmental responsibility. ISO 14001 is the leading certification used to demonstrate a company has an effective environmental management system.

Scimitar operates carbon-neutral offices in the UK which helps to minimise the kit’s carbon footprint. This means they offset the carbon produced from their office operations e.g., energy used to run the building. Looking ahead, they plan to transition manufacturing, which is currently in China, to the UK. This would greatly reduce the emissions associated with shipping and is where the bulk of their carbon footprint lies. This would also support local industry. However, I have yet to find out what their carbon reduction target is across their operations and supply chain, and this should be a company's first priority before considering offsetting.

Finding a completely sustainable company has proven impossible, but Scimitar demonstrates a commitment to sustainability beyond most suppliers, and if they move their manufacturing to the UK, and publish their carbon reduction target across their operations and supply chain, they will be leaders in the industry. 

Football for Future is a non-profit that empowers people and organisations across football with the tools they need to respond to the climate crisis. We asked them to comment on our journey to procuring a sustainable kit, and they said:

Inclusivity

Inclusivity was paramount in our design process, with V, our current Chair of the Deptford Ravens Committee, playing a pivotal role in overseeing the kit selection. Amongst other things, they ensured our kit met inclusivity standards by thoroughly evaluating suppliers across various metrics. As a result, we chose Scimitar also because of their available range of sizes, from XXS to 4XL, offering both loose and fitted options. Additionally, we offer players the option to display their pronouns on the back of their shirts to support inclusivity, especially for neurodiverse individuals who may benefit from this feature. We respect that not all players may feel comfortable or safe doing so.

We're incredibly proud to launch a kit that embodies our community spirit and reflects our values, but it didn’t come without challenges. Purchasing kits suitable for women, non-binary, and trans players remains a significant challenge. Despite our suggestions, the size guideline continues to categorise the kits as ‘ladies’ or ‘men’s’, rather than 'loose' or 'fitted,' which excludes non-binary players and continues gender normative clothing ideals. Additionally, there was only one photograph of the fitted 'ladies’ kits' in the brochure and it didn’t show the waistband of the shorts, something which as women we find important to know. Scimitar was unable to provide better photographs upon request and we couldn't afford to try two samples, one of the ‘men’s’ and ‘ladies’, so we opted for the men’s and hoped for the best. Luckily, we are very happy with the quality and fit.

A collaborative effort 

Creating this kit was a collaborative effort that involved many people. We extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who participated in developing and voting on designs, creating detailed spreadsheets to manage orders for 114 kits, implementing an innovative invoicing system, and exploring various sustainability options, including the possibility of creating our own upcycled embroidery kits!

And we thank Scimitar for being flexible, allowing us to develop our own design, include pronouns and to push kit suppliers in the right direction. Sustainability isn't easy, there isn't a quick fix, and we value companies that are leading the transformation. Plus, our kit looks really cool and feel lovely to play in! 

As Ravens, we invite our supporters and fellow teams to join us in our commitment to sustainability, ethics, and inclusivity as we proudly don our new kit on the field. 

Cacooww!!!

*We asked Scimitar if they would like to comment but have yet to receive their response.