Caroline Gration

Caroline’s career spans both the fashion industry and more than 25 years as a Senior Lecturer in Fashion, building a reputation for combining industry expertise with a longstanding commitment to accessible and sustainable fashion education.

Throughout her teaching career, Caroline believed that fashion education should be available to everyone and rooted in real industry experience. By working closely with the sustainably conscious sector of fashion, she focused on giving students a strong foundation of practical skills, creative confidence and meaningful connections to the industry they would eventually enter.

In 2012, Caroline founded The Fashion School (TFS), creating an inclusive and sustainable learning environment for young people aged 6–18. Designed to inspire creativity and nurture lifelong making skills, TFS encourages fashion awareness, wellbeing and confidence through hands-on learning. Originally established in Brighton with additional studios in London, the school fully relocated to London after 13 successful years in Brighton.

In October 2019, The Fashion School received the Chelsea Award for Future Forward, recognising its contribution as a sustainable community enterprise creating opportunities across all social sectors within Chelsea. Operating as a not-for-profit Community Interest Company, TFS is largely self-funded through its community while ensuring wider access through outreach and partnerships.

TFS works closely with RBKC, Westminster and Brighton Councils to deliver HAF workshops for children receiving free school meals, creative programmes for looked-after children and sewing workrooms supporting refugee communities.

During the 2020 lockdown, Caroline led one of The Fashion School’s most ambitious community projects, working alongside the Royal Brompton and Royal Free hospitals to establish volunteer sewing workrooms that produced more than 70,000 PPE gowns for ICU staff. One of the workrooms was recognised during The Queen’s Christmas Speech in 2020. The initiative reflected the school’s collaborative spirit and was supported by Sarah Mower MBE, whose call to the fashion industry brought together an extraordinary network of volunteers.

Sustainability continues to sit at the heart of The Fashion School’s work. Through a commitment to circular fashion and a drive towards zero waste, approximately 95% of fabrics used are donated deadstock materials sourced through longstanding industry relationships and community support.

Over the years, TFS has received donations from Belstaff, Preen by Thornton Bregazzi, Brøgger, McQueen, Halpern, Richard Quinn, Markus Lupfer and Chelsea Arts Club, with collaborations including Stella McCartney, Rottingdean Bazaar and Primark Cares.

Caroline also established Sewing Family CIO (registered charity 1199744), providing training pathways into employment as sample machinists and supporting the future of skilled manufacturing within the fashion industry.

Through education, sustainability and community action, Caroline continues to champion a vision of fashion as a force for creativity, opportunity and lasting social impact.