One million girls in UK face period poverty during pandemic

Period poverty has affected more than one million in the UK over the course of the pandemic, a survey by an international children’s charity has found, as the coronavirus crisis led to a rise in young people struggling to afford sanitary products.

Research by Plan International UK showed 36 per cent of girls and young women aged between 14 and 21 struggled to afford period products over the last year, with half of this number saying they did not have enough money to buy products at all at some point.

The number of people affected by period poverty rose by one fifth compared to the previous year.

Almost three-quarters (73 per cent) said a lack of access to sanitary products meant they resorted to using toilet paper instead.

The charity’s chief executive, Rose Caldwell, said: “These new figures are shocking but sadly not surprising. It is deeply concerning that the situation has continued to deteriorate since last year, with over a million girls and young women now estimated to have been affected by period poverty during the pandemic.

“We have seen great progress in public awareness of period poverty over the past several years thanks to the tireless work of grassroots organisations, but this is a wake-up call that much more needs to be done to ensure that all girls can access period products when they need them.”

Previous research has found nearly half of girls (49 per cent) have missed a day of school due to their period. Despite the severity of the problem, it was revealed earlier this year that 60 per cent of primary schools and 24 of secondary schools have not signed up to a government scheme to provide free sanitary products.

The research follows a campaign film that aims to evoke anger and raise awareness about the scale of the issue in the UK. Social enterprise Hey Girls launched the #SeeingRed campaign earlier this month, with a film depicting a teenage girl and a young trans man facing period poverty.

Celia Hodson, founder and chief executive of Hey Girls, said: “Period poverty in the UK, or anywhere for that matter, is something many of us aren’t aware of or feel inherently connected to. It is something that we should be angry about. Poverty is happening on our streets and is something each individual can help to change.”

In a pioneering development, Scotland became the first country in the world to make period products free for all last November. MSPs voted through legislation to impose a legal duty on local authorities to ensure that items such as tampons and sanitary pads are freely available to “anyone who needs them”.