By Charlotte Webster-
Female pupils who suffer acute problems arising from menstruation are waiting for a £20m contract to be executed by the department of education who have promised to supply sanitary products to schools. It follows the government agreement to spend up to £20 million supplying free sanitary products to schools and colleges across England, and the recent revelation that the Department Of Education is seeking a company to deliver a £20m contract to address sanitary products for female pupils he may need them.
lan International UK, the co-chair of a government taskforce on period poverty, has said that schools must change the way they teach and talk about periods in order to tackle the stigma that has led to 66% of girls missing classes over period pains and period poverty.
Chancellor, Philip Hammond’s spring statement was clear in its promise to deliver access to free sanitary products from September this year in its determination to combat period poverty. Disturbing reports of several teenage girls suffering the pain and inconvenience of period pains during lessons without any system in place to account for their plight led to an urgent review for action to be taken to deal with the problem. Many female students had reportedly skipped classes because of the embarrassment they faced whenever they mentioned period pains.
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Others had been subjected to teasing from classmates, especially insensitive boys. The consequences was the undesirable result of girls either skipping classes during period pains, or those attending classes not being catered for professionally because of the silence surrounding the issue.
Documents published by the Department for Education reveal the government’s preparation to spend between £10 million and £20 million on the scheme between September this year and the end of 2020. The DfE will decide whether to extend the contract by 12 or 18 months.
According to the documents, the DfE is looking for a “single national supplier” to source an “appropriate range of period products”, design and implement “user interfaces and support services” and to plan and executive a national delivery service.
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“We have estimated the value of this opportunity to be in the region of £10 million to £20 million based on an anticipated level of take-up across the 1.7 million eligible learners,” the tender states.
“The funding for this opportunity is contingent on user need, alongside the delivery and distribution methods used by any successful bidder.” The contract is due to begin this September and end in December 2020.
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The successful bidder “will be required to offer environmentally-friendly sanitary pads as a minimum, and are encouraged to provide further environmentally-friendly options (such as menstrual cups or eco-friendly tampons)”.
It follows concerns raised by the environmental charity City to Sea that the government won’t specifically require all the products offered to be plastic-free.
Nadhim Zahawi, the children’s minister, said the government was “determined that no one should be held back from reaching their potential, which is why we are making free period products available to all schools and colleges from early next year.
“In designing this scheme we have carefully considered our impact on the environment – encouraging eco-friendly products to be offered where possible – while making sure the programme remains cost-effective and sustainable.
“I encourage all bidders to think carefully about how they could reduce their environmental impact, while at the same time ensuring their products meet the needs of all who use the scheme, so that no young person misses out on education.”
The announcement also comes after Plan International UK, the co-chair of a government taskforce on period poverty, said schools must change the way they teach and talk about periods if they are to tackle the stigma that contributes to two in three girls missing lesso
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