Period poverty: the problem is still here

Period Dignity Kits programme in Kenya. Courtesy of Freedom4Girls’

Anjola Fashawe investigates period poverty through campaigners, revealing the struggles young people face

Nearly a decade after ‘period poverty’ entered mainstream political debate, campaigners say the crisis has not disappeared but has instead become quieter, slipping into the background of a wider cost-of-living reality.

Girls are missing school and using makeshift products
In schools across the UK, campaigners describe a troubling pattern. Girls are missing lessons every month, some bleeding through their uniforms, others using toilet paper, socks or scraps of fabric as makeshift pads because they have nothing else.

For Tina Leslie, founder of Freedom4Girls, these experiences reflect a wider, often hidden crisis. Her organisation provides period kits through its Dignity Kits programme, delivered in partnership with the Alpine Group. It also offers menstrual health education to girls and women in Kenya, while supporting communities in Leeds and Leicester. She tells me a lack of access to basic products can leave girls confused, isolated and at risk.

“They were using socks and t-shirts and one of them had had a period for two years and didn’t even know what it was,” Leslie explains. In Kenya, the consequences can be even more severe. “Girls there use ash, dung, bits out of their mattresses, rags, corn husks, some just sit in a hole because they haven’t even got anything to use.” The lack of access to products can carry serious risks. “There’s a lot of transactional sex, sex for pads, they’ll get pregnant, or get HIV or syphilis.”

She adds that in some cases, girls are forced to rely on whatever is available, including using their mother’s pants during their period.

Young women are isolating themselves
Back in the UK, the same patterns appear in less visible ways. Linda Allbutt, founder of the Staffordshire-based charity Period Power, shares with me the long-term consequences of period poverty. Her organisation has supplied more than 200 food banks, charities and family hubs, distributing nearly £500,000 worth of products over eight years.

“We know of girls who miss school every month because they can’t afford period products,” Albert tells me. “We know of women isolating themselves because they’re using toilet paper, or old socks, or rags, anything that would suffice as a make-do product.” She adds that the impact extends beyond immediate discomfort. “If you can’t fulfil your potential because you can’t go to school for one week in four, we’re losing talent.”

Shame is keeping the crisis hidden
While the issue is often framed around access to period products, campaigners say that only captures part of the picture. Shame plays a central role in shaping how and whether people seek help at all. Meri Jimenez, head of communications, fundraising and external engagement at The Hygiene Bank, notes that stigma continues to keep the scale of the issue hidden.

“50% of people in hygiene poverty are too ashamed to go and ask for help,” she says. “They are afraid of telling a relative or a friend that they didn’t shower yesterday because they ran out of shampoo, that they don’t have any deodorant, that they have to miss work because of it.”

The charity, founded just seven years ago, now operates more than 150 projects across the UK, supported by over 800 volunteers and working with more than 1,600 community partners, including schools, food banks and refugee organisations.

Support is not one-size-fits-all
Across these settings, need varies widely and often extends beyond what is publicly discussed. Charities report supporting women fleeing domestic abuse who need small, portable hygiene kits they can take with them at short notice.

For some, particularly those with additional needs, alternative and more sustainable options such as period pants can offer a more practical and accessible solution. This is especially important for people with disabilities, long-term health conditions and sensory needs.

“We give them out to people with autism, disabled people, and trans men,” says Leslie. “Trying to use a pad when you’re disabled can be really difficult, sometimes being able to just put pants on instead is much easier. The material is also really soft, so it works better for people with sensory issues.”

Yet even well-intentioned solutions can fall short if they do not reflect people’s realities. “There is a balance between sustainability and need,” Jimenez explains. “Some families reject period pants because they need hot water to wash them, they need to pay for electricity, and at the end of the month that all adds up.” Albert tells me she has seen similar patterns in the UK. “When we go to homeless shelters, they’re not wanting reusable products at all. They don’t have washing facilities.”

Rising costs are pushing more women into period poverty
Across the UK, ActionAid UK reports, around one in five young women report struggling to afford period products in the past year. As household budgets tighten, non-food essentials are often deprioritised.

“If anybody is struggling to pay their bills or put food on the table, they’re going to struggle to buy period products,” Albert adds. “Until all poverty’s eradicated, period poverty’s going to exist.”

At the same time, the organisations supporting them are under increasing strain. Donations to charities fell by more than £1bn in 2025, according to a report by the Charities Aid Foundation, while demand continues to rise. The recent closure of period poverty charity Bloody Good Period has intensified pressure across the sector.

“Some of the organisations who they had been supporting women came to us the next day,” Jimenez explains. “They had been helping thousands and suddenly that stopped, so we had to step in.” She highlights that securing funding is becoming increasingly difficult. “We spend a lot of time reaching out, trying to build partnerships with companies that can support us financially or through donations.”

She adds, “The more people understand, the more we can reduce stigma.” Despite growing demand, awareness remains limited. Research by the Hygiene Bank suggests that around 20 million people in the UK have not heard of hygiene poverty or understood how it affects those around them, highlighting how hidden the crisis can be.

“There is support out there,” Jimenez notes. “But that barrier, the shame and stigma, is what prevents people from asking for help.”

For campaigners, increasing visibility remains one of the most important tools in tackling the issue. “Interviews like this are really important,” she explains. “Because the more people understand hygiene poverty, the more we can reduce stigma, raise funds and get products to those who need them.”

Everyone can play a part by learning more and speaking up.