A Narberth fashion designer is teaching members of the community 'What Not to Wear' to help combat climate change.

Donna Hole, who recently opened her Giddy Aunt boutique in Narberth, runs a weekly 'Revamp Your Wardrobe' class at the Bloomfield House Community Centre.

Bloomfield House is one of three centres across Wales to take part in the Welsh Assembly Government's Climate Change Challenge.

The main aim of the challenge, which started in August, is to show people in the local community how they can take simple steps to help Wales reduce its carbon footprint. The staff at Bloomfield have worked hard to encourage members of the community to live lower carbon lives, by introducing an exciting range of environmentally friendly fun workshops events and classes, such as Donna's clothes course.

The course aims to give students the skills they need to update their wardrobes and their homes without breaking the bank or harming the environment by purchasing new items. Donna encourages her students to use recycled materials to make many of the items in her class, which is part of Pembrokeshire County Council's Learning Pembrokeshire courses for adults.

Donna said: "Learning to sew, alter and mend clothes is a great way to adapt and renovate clothes and home furnishings that have seen better days.

"There is no need to buy new things all the time - breathing new life into your old clothes and cushions is a great way to save money and cut carbon."

The community has already been making small changes to their everyday lives, such as ensuring lights are switched off when not needed, not wasting water and learning to cook using only one pot or pan to save energy.

And Donna's course is leading the way in helping the community become more eco-friendly, by teaching them to 'make do and mend' rather than buy new.

Bloomfield House is competing in a friendly rivalry with Bridges Community Centre in Monmouthshire and Pontrobert Community Centre in Powys, in a year-long competition to reduce their carbon footprint.

This year's Climate Change Challenge follows the success of last year's efforts between three Welsh pubs. Last year's winner, The Grove Hotel in Pembrokeshire, saved more than 725,000 litres of water and £800 on its water bill, as well as cutting its energy bills and making the hotel as environmentally friendly as possible.

The Climate Change Challenge is supported by the Carbon Trust and Dwr Cymru Welsh Water who will advise on and monitor energy and water use throughout the Challenge. The Energy Saving Trust will be supporting the Challenge by offering tips to community members on how to be more energy, water and waste efficient in the home.

The challenge will run until July when a judging panel of experts will pick an overall winner based on their engagement with their community, carbon footprint reduction and long-term commitment to more sustainable living.

For more information on the challenge, please visit http://www.walescarbonfootprint.gov.uk">www.walescarbonfootprint.gov.uk