Period Poverty?

I can get through a whole large pack of heavy duty pads in one day on a heavy day and the type of towels that contain my flow are certainly not 49p for 14! And that has nothing to do with wanting "brands"!

There's always someone who thinks that everyone else can manage their period on just one box of own brand tampons just because their own flow is easily managed.

A lot of girls need to double up with pads AND tampons to keep their periods managable!

And then there's painkillers, having a spare school uniform to change into in case of leaks (some kids only have 1 uniform total) etc..

If you can afford the initial outlay for washable pads or cups it keeps the price lower long term. But you cant do that if you dont have the initial money to invest!

Whatever the rights and wrongs, or the price of sanitary wear, or whether or not we feel that sanitary protection could easily be budgeted for, the point is, a young girl should never, ever be in a situation where she has nothing to use

It’s not an easy time for any young girl, but without knowing where your next tampon/sanitary towel is coming from, it must be a massive worry

Surely, in 2019 this should never happen

I think some schools are now providing sanitary items free of charge and food banks too.
I agree its a sad state of affairs when girls are struggling like this.

The UK is supposed to be the 5th largest economy in the world and I find it really hard to understand this Period Poverty.

I find it hard to understand that people don't understand that most of the 'riches' generated in our economy are in the hands of relatively few people.

Yes, period poverty is scandalous but there are other things that people can't afford. Like food...
2,000 food banks, anybody?

metro.co.uk/2018/09/17/there-are-now-14000000-people-living-in-poverty-in-the-uk-7950939/

(This is not intended to minimise the seriousness of the OP's post)

To those who donate to food banks etc. It’s Always a good idea to pop in some sanitary protection along with food donations. Imagine buying tampons and towels when you can’t afford to feed your family.

Good idea Gillybob

I can’t bear to think of school girls worrying about this

I noticed while I was on holiday that Kirkwall Community Centre has started to put free sanitary products in the ladies loos for anyone who needs them.

Including them (and things like toilet rolls/toothpaste/soap etc) in donations to food banks is a really good idea.

Does anyone give to the charities that provide sanitary protection to refugees, especially in the third world? I keep meaning to but keep forgetting

DD3 sews the reusable ones for a charity

schools and public buildings in Scotland supply sanitary protection free and offer enough to take home if you're in need .Sad isn't it that in the 21st century people have to live like this ..that few million spent on Harrys new pad would have helped enormously on things like this that MATTER ...not copper baths !

What's 'free bleed '

I couldn’t agree with you more paddyann it’s shameful .

That copper bath is monstrous. It'll get Verdigris on it given time.

To Olderthanmost, I think free bleeding is using nothing and just letting the blood fly everywhere. Happy to be corrected if I'm wrong.

Some women did this on the tube for one day because they wanted to prove a point. I can't now remember what the point was that they wished to prove.

Tangerine.
Thanks for that. Seems very messy and strange.

Yes, free bleeding is just letting the blood flow. It’s shocking that in this day and age sanitary protection should be beyond anyone’s financial reach and Paddyann is right, there’s funding for this year and next for schools, universities, libraries and leisure centres to offer free products. I was at an international conference recently at one of the universities and a Portuguese woman in the loo queue was taking photos of the tampons and towels in the loos to show her colleagues back home - she was so impressed. I’m so glad that my daughter never has to worry about being able to access them at uni or my son’s friends at school

I agree, two of my granddaughters are ten, and despite all the reassurance we all give them, are very anxious about the onset of periods

It would break my heart to think they had the added worry of not having the right protection

www.gov.uk/government/news/free-sanitary-products-in-all-primary-schools

Published 16 April 2019

Free sanitary products will be offered to girls in all primary schools in England from early next year, under plans announced today by the Department for Education.

The Government committed to provide access to free sanitary products in England’s secondary schools and colleges in last month’s Spring Statement, and today Children and Families Minister Nadhim Zahawi confirmed access to the free products will also be fully-funded by the Department for Education in all primary schools across the country.

Extending the programme to all primary schools follows feedback from teachers, students and parents, and the DfE is now working with key stakeholders in the public and private sector to roll-out the programme in a cost-effective manner that supports girls and young women across the country.
Children and Families Minister Nadhim Zahawi said:

This Government is determined to ensure that no-one should be held back from reaching their potential – and wants everyone to lead active, healthy, happy lives.

That is why earlier this year we committed to fully-fund access to free sanitary products in all secondary schools and colleges in England.

After speaking to parents, teachers and pupils, we are now extending this to more than 20,000 primary schools so that every young person in all our schools and colleges gets the support that they need.

The announcement builds on bold new relationships, sex and health education, published earlier this year, to ensure every pupil learns about leading healthy lives, including menstrual wellbeing, as part of a well-rounded education on mental and physical health.

It also follows other steps taken by the Government, including the introduction in 2015 of a £15 million annual Tampon Tax Fund to support women’s charities – and a commitment to end period poverty globally by 2030.

This commitment included the creation of a government-wide taskforce, backed by £250,000, to work with businesses and the third-sector to develop new ideas to tackle period poverty.

Today’s announcement – which will see all primary and secondary schools and colleges offered fully-funded products at the earliest possible opportunity to roll-out the scheme nationwide in early 2020 – has been welcomed by charities and campaigners who have heralded the “fantastic news”.

Thanks POGS...I thought I had heard that this was going to be the case, so, the government do some good things after all ( you would never know it going by GN).

I think we hear a great deal about "poverty" but this brings home just how poor our poorest are now, in greater numbers to than they have been for decades.