Tag: period poverty

New mobile app to help access free period products

PickupMyPeriod connects to hundreds of venues across Scotland

A mobile app has been launched to allow users to identify locations across Scotland where period products can be accessed for free.

The PickupMyPeriod app currently links to over 700 venues in many communities where free products are available – and the number is expected to grow where further local authorities join the app.

Scotland was the first country in the world to make period products widely available for free – firstly in schools, colleges and universities, then followed by wider access in communities. The PickupMyPeriod app builds on this world-leading work.

Social Justice Secretary Shona Robison launched the app virtually with pupils from St Paul’s High School in Glasgow, where the council has worked closely with students in the delivery of free period products since the policy was introduced.

Ms Robison said: “The app is a fantastic tool that will help everyone who wants to access free period products for themselves, a family member or friend to easily find them in many places across Scotland.

“I’m thankful for the support of local authorities in the implementation of access to free period products in Scotland. Young women and girls have been crucial in developing the best ways to access products to meet their needs and I’m grateful to them for sharing their views.”

COSLA President, Councillor Alison Evison, added: “Having recognised the impact lack of access to period products may have on individuals, Local Government has a longstanding commitment to provide free products both in education and community settings for those who may need them.

“As we look towards the implementation of the Period Products Act, I am delighted that work undertaken on period dignity both locally and nationally continues to progress and welcome the launch of the new app as a tool which can support this.”

Celia Hodson, Founder & CEO of Hey Girls and My Period, said: “This is a ground-breaking project for Scotland. For the first time, people across the country will be able to use an app to find and access free period products that they can walk or drive to easily.

“As a Scottish-based social enterprise whose core goal is to help eradicate period poverty, it was great to have our app idea adopted, part-funded and supported by the Scottish Government.

“PickupMyPeriod will act as a fantastic tool to raise awareness of period poverty and equality, as well as providing support to people who need a little extra support across Scotland.”

IOS – PickupMyPeriod app

Android – PickupMyPeriod app

Edinburgh Leisure joins with Hey Girls to end period poverty

Edinburgh Leisure has joined forces with award winning Scottish community interest company and social enterprise, Hey Girls to provide free period products to customers.

A range of sustainable products including tampons (both digital and applicator types) and period pads are now available across all Edinburgh Leisure sites. The period products are in changing and toilet areas, as appropriate, for customers to help themselves as required.

Wendy Avinou, Leisure Manager and lead for this project said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with Hey Girls whose mission is to eradicate period poverty in the UK by providing quality period products in our venues to everyone who needs them.

“Edinburgh Leisure is a charity on a mission to help people lead healthier, happier, more active lives and anything we can do to eradicate people’s barriers to this, including period poverty, we are only too delighted to get involved with. Free period products can encourage participation in sport and support good health. 

“Our Active Communities programme harnesses the power of physical activity and sport to tackle inequalities and combat the effects of inactivity.  Each year we support around 10,000 people affected by health conditions, disabilities, inequalities, and poverty to get active – empowering them to improve and protect their health, wellbeing, and quality of life.”

According to the Joseph Rountree Foundation UK Poverty Report 2020/21, 14.5 million people in the UK are caught up in poverty, equating to more than one in five people. The fact that period poverty still affects people in the UK in 2021 shocks many people.

Plan International UK research found that period poverty affects 1 in 10 people across the UK. In Scotland, the number is thought to be closer to 1 in 4.

More research is needed to understand exactly what is happening, but period poverty is a real problem for many people.

Period products are a necessity, but they are expensive. Tight budgets can leave people forced to prioritise other purchases, leaving them without the right period products, without enough period products, or without any period products at all.

Campaigns to address period poverty have gained momentum, and UK governments are now stepping in to help solve the problem. Last year Scotland became the first country in the world to make period products free for all. 

The City of Edinburgh Council have been responsible for implementing the legislation within the capital on behalf of the Scottish Government and have enabled the partnership with Edinburgh Leisure.

Cllr Amy McNeese-Mechan, Culture and Communities Vice Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “We’re delighted that Edinburgh Leisure is one of the first of our partners to roll out free period products for all as this should be a basic right.

“We’re committed to achieving this goal as we showed last year when they were made available in community centres, libraries, schools and early years centres and we’re hoping to make them more widely available in a range of venues in 2022.

“We would urge everyone to look out for, and take part in, our public consultation for the Scottish Parliament bill on the roll out of the free period products next year.”

https://youtu.be/YDf1rnSK-dQ

Celia Hodson, CEO & Founder of Hey Girls, added: “Increasing access to period products is really important. Free products can improve concentration, encourage participation in sport and support good health.

“They prevent people having to make dehumanising choices – to wear the wrong product, or a worse quality product or to wear a product for longer than is hygienic or safe.

“At Hey Girls we believe that access to quality period products is a right, not a privilege. Being able to access free period products at the Edinburgh Leisure sites will allow people to conveniently pick up products they need with no questions asked. What’s more, all our period products are sustainable and chemical free; being made with materials including sustainable bamboo and organic cotton, for a planet and body-friendly period.”

Hey Girls was initially established in 2018 by Celia Hodson and her two daughters Kate and Bec as a kitchen table start up after experiencing period poverty themselves. The company has donated over 19 million products to people in the UK facing period poverty through its ‘buy one, donate one’ pledge.

With 21 employees, they’ve grown into a UK wide operation with dispatch teams in Musselburgh in East Lothian, Diss in Norfolk and Sydney in Australia. They are proud to be multi award winning and have celebrity supporters including Michael Sheen and Caitlin Moran.

For more information:   www.edinburghleisure.co.uk

Edinburgh Napier’s Bleeding Free documentary premiere tonight

Period poverty, period dignity and menstrual education comes under spotlight in new film created by Edinburgh Napier students

A documentary that captures a three-year long campaign by students and staff at Edinburgh Napier to raise awareness of period poverty will be premiered tonight.

‘Bleeding Free’ will premiere online tonight (Thursday 20 May) at 7pm.

The documentary captures the work and campaigning of Bleedin’ Saor – a collective consisting of Product Design, Film and TV students as well as staff members from the University’s School of Arts and Creative Industries.

Bleedin’ Saor (saor translates to the English word ‘free’) was formed in early 2019 to combat menstrual myths and break the ‘silence of menstruation’ in order to create a long-lasting impact for young people and their communities. 

The documentary – which was filmed, edited and produced by students and staff from Edinburgh Napier – looks at topics such as period poverty, period dignity and menstrual education both in Scotland and overseas in Uganda.

The collective visited Uganda in 2019 as it took its campaign to East Africa to join the global efforts in the menstrual movement.

The 10-day trip saw the group meet with and interview members of a number of organisations within the country who are fighting for better period product provision, gender equality and women’s’ rights.

The team met staff at the Girl Up Initiative which aims to empower women and girls through menstrual education, including taking their message out onto the streets of Kampala. The collective also viewed menstrual health workshops in primary schools and saw first hand how social enterprises producing re-usable sanitary pads can help sustain local communities as well as enable girls to stay in school longer.

The trip also saw the Bleedin’ Saor team meet up with Irise International which aims to create menstruation friendly schools in Uganda. With the charity, the team met with elders who support women and girls in their communities and presented their own ideas to a primary school in Buwenge, a town in the Eastern region of Uganda.

Closer to home, the documentary also captures the work of the collective and its three designers – Sam Calder, Hannah Stevens and Brogan Henderson – as they worked with the University and the Hey Girls social enterprise to design two new period product dispensers.

The final design has been used by Edinburgh Napier to make period products free to all who need them within the University’s campuses and will soon be installed in schools, colleges and universities across the country. The free products at Edinburgh Napier have been made available thanks to Scottish Government funding.

The Bloody Big Brunch event hosted by Bleedin’ Saor at all three of Edinburgh Napier’s campuses in early 2019 – which saw guests pay for entry to the brunch through donating period products rather than money – is also revisited in the film.

The premiere of the documentary had been delayed previously as a result of the on-going Covid-19 pandemic, but the team is delighted to now be able to revisit its campaign with a wider audience.

Dr Kirsten Macleod, programme leader of the BA (Hons) Television programme at Edinburgh Napier and Executive Producer of the film, said: “We are so pleased to be able to share this film and showcase how Scotland is leading the world in providing free access to period products alongside the amazing work being done here and in Uganda on menstrual education and support. This is a global issue that will change the lives of millions of women and girls.”

The entire Bleedin’ Saor project has been co-ordinated by Product Design lecturer, Ruth Cochrane, Dr. Kirsten Macleod and School of Arts and Creative Industries’ placements officer, Lindsay Morgan. It has received funding from Santander Mobility Grants and other funding initiatives.

More information on the Bleeding Free documentary and information on how to reserve your ticket to the premiere can be found at 

https://bleedingfree.wordpress.com/

More information on the wider Bleedin’ Saor collective can be found at 

https://www.bleedinsaor.com

Morrisons tackles period poverty with ‘Package for Sandy’

– ‘Package for Sandy’ was created by Morrisons Community Champion, Emma Parkinson, in response to period poverty at her local store in Bolton –

– Initiative now available at 497 stores –

– 125,000 sanitary products to be distributed to local charities nationwide by Morrisons Community Champions –

Morrisons is helping to fight back against period poverty by rolling out ‘Package for Sandy’ – a service available for customers in need who can access a discreet package of sanitary protection products – across all its 497 stores after a store colleague in Bolton came up with the idea to help vulnerable customers. 

The ‘Package for Sandy’ initiative was created and launched by Community Champion, Emma Parkinson, who saw the need for the service in her local area. The initiative is now being rolled out nationwide across all Morrisons stores in the UK in a bid to beat period poverty.

Customers in need can now go to any Morrisons customer service desk nationwide and ask for a package for ‘Sandy’ or a ‘period product pack’. The customers will then be given a free discreet envelope with sanitary products and no questions asked. 

The package is made up of a brown paper bag with two single sanitary towels. 

Emma, who works at the Morrisons Bolton Atlas store, came up with the idea in response to the issue of period poverty. The ‘Package for Sandy’ offers discreet support for those who may be in emergency need or are struggling for sanitary products.  

Emma Parkinson, Community Champion at Morrisons Bolton Atlas, said: “Period poverty is a real problem and going to a school in a predominantly low-income area gave me an insight into what it’s like to have no access to sanitary wear.

“It’s shocking that young girls and women go without sanitary products through no fault of their own so I’m really pleased that we at Morrisons can help to support those in need across the whole of the UK.” 

Following the success of the recent Buy One Donate One campaign on sanitary products, Morrisons is also donating 125,000 sanitary products which will be distributed to local charities by community champions nationwide. 

For more information visit www.morrisons.co.uk.      

#letsendperiodpoverty

Public views sought on Bill to make period products free for all

Should period products be freely available by law across Scotland? That’s the question being posed by Holyrood’s Local Government and Communities Committee.

The Committee is considering a Bill which would ensure everyone in Scotland who needs to use period products can obtain them free of charge through a “period products scheme”. Continue reading Public views sought on Bill to make period products free for all

Eight million free period products delivered

More than eight million free sanitary products were provided to school, college and university students across Scotland in the first six months of a world-leading new scheme.

The Scottish Government was the first government in the world to provide free access to sanitary products in schools colleges and universities.

Continue reading Eight million free period products delivered

Students visit Uganda as part of campaign to raise awareness of period poverty

International work will feature as part of documentary by Bleedin’ Saor collective

A creative collective from Edinburgh Napier that aims to raise awareness of period poverty has taken its campaign to East Africa as part of a once in a lifetime trip to Uganda.  Continue reading Students visit Uganda as part of campaign to raise awareness of period poverty

Fort Kinnaird offers free sanitary products to help tackle period poverty

Edinburgh’s Fort Kinnaird has installed a dispenser offering complimentary sanitary products in an effort to support those experiencing period poverty. Shoppers in need are invited to take a free product from the machine, which is located in the women’s bathroom facilities at the Fort Kinnaird customer service centre. Continue reading Fort Kinnaird offers free sanitary products to help tackle period poverty

Hey Girls make a Big Issue out of period poverty

Big Issue invests in trailblazing social enterprise Hey Girls

A £50,000 investment and mentorship from BII’s Power Up Scotland programme is helping trailblazing social enterprise Hey Girls fight period poverty. Continue reading Hey Girls make a Big Issue out of period poverty