Dear Chancellor and Secretary of State
Period products must remain free in schools and colleges: a sector response to the potential cuts to the Period Product Scheme
Universal access to period products in school is vital for young people who menstruate. Not being able to access these essential items is a significant barrier to education. It causes stress, anxiety and shame, and is a leading driver of school absenteeism - impacting the wellbeing and academic success of countless young people across the UK. We are therefore concerned to hear media reports of the Government considering cuts to, or even the total axing of, the Period Product Scheme in schools and colleges.
Secondary school teachers estimate that 43% of students struggle to access their own period products. 35% report being aware of their students missing school while they are on their period, 41% are aware of students missing PE lessons, and 40% say students can’t concentrate in lessons. But this issue goes beyond the school gates. 1 in 5 people who went without period products in childhood have also gone without in adulthood. Cycles of exclusion caused by period inequity start early and follow people all the way through to the workplace, costing the economy £3.25 billion a year in missed days of work.
Charitable organisations also play an important role in providing period products, education and advice outside of schools. Removing or reducing this scheme would greatly increase the burden on charities. These organisations are already plugging the gap created by the absence of robust government action on period poverty. They are facing increased need for their services, increased costs, and reduced funding.
Any savings achieved by cutting the scheme will show up as costs elsewhere in the system and stifle the Government’s aims to break down barriers to opportunity, reduce essential costs for families, and improve school attendance. There is a clear moral and financial imperative to protect the scheme and ensure it is implemented effectively so that all students who menstruate can access essential period products and participate fully in society.
Periods do not stop for school - or for financial cuts that will deeply affect both the short-term and long-term wellbeing of our young people. We urge the Government to ensure no student is held back by their period by:
Protecting the scheme from any proposed or potential cuts.
Extending the scheme beyond July 2025, via a permanent commitment.
Evaluating the scheme for effectiveness and reach, ensuring enrolled schools are using the scheme effectively, and identifying why unenrolled eligible schools are not taking part.
Providing a clearer set of evidence-based guidelines for how schools themselves should adopt, implement and manage the scheme.
Implementing the scheme equitably across the UK's devolved nations.
“It is so important that women and girls are given free period products in schools as these vital products ultimately make education much more accessible. Education shouldn’t be a luxury.”
Eden Bryne, young gender equality campaigner
“My boyfriend is given free condoms because no one wants me to get pregnant. They all want me to keep getting my period, but no-one cares if I am clean or free-bleeding at my desk.”
A 17-year-old student - All Yours
“We have had a mum in trouble with school through their low attendance because the child didn’t want to go to school smelling and while on her period. She now comes in each week for deodorant, period products and shower gel the past few months. Since receiving help, she now has 100% attendance in school.”
Kindfulness Coffee Club
Yours sincerely,
Period Equity Alliance
Chrissy Cattle, CEO, Irise International
Caroline Herman, Founder & CEO, All Yours
Rachel Grocott, CEO, Bloody Good Period
Charlotte Walshe, Partnerships and Impact Director, In Kind Direct
Neelam Heera-Shergill, Founder, Cysters
Professor Annalise Weckesser, SEEN (Social ScienEs Endometriosis Network)/ Birmingham City University
Linda Allbutt, Founder, Period Power
Molly Fenton BCAh, youth activist and founder of The Love Your Period Youth Campaign
Kate Prince, Senior Public Affairs Manager, Essity
Agatha-May Akora, women’s health activist and researcher
Supported by:
Laura Coryton MBE, tampon tax petition starter and founder of Sex Ed Matters