Leigh Richards over at Rodolfo Walsh's Glasses has covered the news that Rhondda Cynon Taff council has supported a proposal to provide free sanitary products to schoolgirls in the area amd it may well be best if you started on his page here.
After SNP pilot project in Aberdeen giving sanitary towels and tampons free to all women in the area who need them.It has been left to Elyn Stephens, a Plaid Cymru Councillor who explained.
“Think of it as toilet paper,” “You wouldn’t be expected to bring in your own toilet paper to school or ask a teacher for toilet paper. My older sister is ten years older than me, her niece is ten years younger than me, and in thirty years nothing has changed.”
“What’s scary is there’s so little information about how many absences there are [due to period poverty],” she adds. “But it’s not just about absence. You can be in a lesson, but you’re not concentrating because of the worry.It is truly a scandal that this scheme is only just being considered , maybe its because political power is male dominated and it is a mystery to them.
“A lot of older people and men just assumed sanitary products were given out in schools. That it’s a done deal. And if you have predominantly older men in charge, nothing changes. I’m not the average age of a councillor. I’ve been involved in youth politics and this was a topic we discussed, so it was just normal. It was almost a shock it hadn’t been raised somewhere it could make a difference.
“If anyone takes anyone from this, speak to their daughters, their nieces, their sisters and find out the situation in their school. People are not having these conversations and people assume it’s being taken care of. Find out the situation and lobby your local council.”
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You could bet your pension that if men were faced with a monthly expenses burden we would have seen action taken decades ago
The move is estimated to cost about £70,000, something Elyn says is a “drop in the ocean”, especially when councillors have all been provided iPads at a similar total cost.
Free ipads but not sanitary pads there a certain irony here/
As Rights Info reports
Frustrated at the lack of change the politician decided to take matters into her own hands, bringing a motion to council that all secondary schools in the borough should provide free sanitary products to pupils. Similar to a recent pilot scheme by the SNP in Aberdeen, the move would mean those who are unable products would be able to get them safely and discreetly.
Now the motion has passed in Rhondda Cynon Taff, officers will prepare a report on the feasibility of the scheme, which will then go back to the council for final approval or dismissal. However, whatever happens in the county, Elyn thinks the most important thing is that younger people get involved in politics and raise the issues which matter to them.
How right she is lets have more councillors like Elyn in every party who understand the needs of the people in their community and consider their priorities such as sanitary pads over ipads .
1 comment:
Yes glyn Elyn's observation that nothing has changed in 30 years is a stark illustration that the serious issue of the affordability of sanitary products remaims one of the overlooked scandals of our time. The accounts given by young girls of how they try to cope when they cant afford sanitary towels are truly heartbreaking. And lets be clear this hidden scandal is not just an issue for girls and women - it should concern all of us (male or female) who care about the welfare and wellbeing of people in our society. Sanitary pads over ipads absolutely! And if enough of us speak out on it and support people like elyn in her campaign theres every chance free sanitary products will soon be made available to all girls in wales.
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