Year 6 pupils at South Hetton Primary School explain how they made a difference to the issue of period poverty
The class teacher provided the pupils with four images depicting different social and environmental problems including an image of a sign on cardboard saying ‘food or tampons?’ highlighting the issue of the #homelessperiod.
Pupils were also asked to contribute their own ideas about any other social or environmental issues they felt the class could ‘make a difference’ to. The class then narrowed down the long list of ideas to the top four choices and used the weighted voting method to select their final project idea which was period problems and poverty.
“People shouldn’t be uncomfortable talking about periods.”
Year 6 pupil
Pupils started out by carrying out some research into the issue to find out whether their parents were aware of the problem of access to period products for people on low incomes, and if they realised that period products are considered luxury items and taxed as such. When the surveys were returned, the children analysed the results, comparing responses of people of different ages. Pupils also researched how many people were homeless in the northeast and what charities were already doing to support them.
As a result of their research, pupils decided the best way to help address the problem would be to create ‘Pants Packs’ containing period products to donate to their local food bank and homeless shelters. The pupils created a logo for their campaign which they used on posters and leaflets sent out asking for donations of wet wipes, hand sanitizer, tampons and pads to create their packs. The pupils set up donation stations in the local doctor’s surgery, church and local shops and wrote letters to supermarkets asking for their support.
The pupils were visited by a volunteer from the Peterlee Food Bank who explained where the donations would be going and why they were needed. They wrote poems to express how it would feel to be homeless and having to deal with the additional pain, discomfort and embarrassment of having a period with no access to proper period protection. To raise awareness of the issue of periods and poverty, and where people could donate period products, some of the pupils were also interviewed on Heart Radio.
The pupils received a huge number of donations and support for their campaign from the community by raising awareness of the issue locally. When their teacher shared something on social media about their campaign, the project caught the attention of the local MP, Grahame Morris, who submitted an Early Day Motion to the House of Commons and tabled a question for the Minister for Women and Equalities asking if she would take steps to ensure the provision of free period products to low-income families.
Did you know that the average cost of periods in the UK over a year is £500, which many people cannot afford?
Watch South Hetton Primary School making a difference in the House of Commons
The donation stations set up during the project will continue to collect items for Peterlee Foodbank so the project is set to continue long after the Year 6 children have left the school.
“The students of South Hetton Primary should be immensely proud of the positive impact they have had in their local community. The pupils demonstrated remarkable maturity and social awareness in developing their Period Problems and Poverty campaign. South Hetton Primary school’s campaign has been taken up nationally and I hope it will inspire others to participate in the Make a Difference Challenge.”
Grahame Morris MP
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