The SU Women Students Network are excited to announce that they are working with Emily Pinn, 3rd year BA (Hons) Education student, who has a vision to tackle period inequality and women’s health needs on campus.
Emily contacted the network at say;
' I really want to create a space where all students, regardless of their gender, feel safe to open up conversations about menstruation and women's health issues, both of which are still greatly stigmatised in society.
This started as an imagined group for one of my assignments in second year, and was aimed at combatting period poverty across campus - something that many students face. I hope to raise awareness of the current period product provisions that the university provides, as well as to possibly increase provision and create a more centralised system.
I'm starting small, but would love to get more people involved and make a greater impact.'
The group aims to:
- Increase current provision to provide free period products in various different ways across campus to those in need, no questions asked;
- Address the structural issues around menstrual inequalities within the university, for example, by reforming extenuating circumstances policy to recognise period pain (dysmenorrhoea);
- Collaborate with people within the university, and beyond, to run events aimed at increasing menstrual literacy and raising awareness of issues relating to women’s health. For example, the importance of understanding your menstrual cycle, raising awareness of conditions such as endometriosis, sustainable period products, and how we can combat the stigma surrounding periods;
- Fundraise for women’s health charities, such as Endometriosis UK , as well as to purchase period products for campus;
- Create a social media presence to increase awareness of the group and women’s health issues;
- Most importantly, we want to work with fellow students to find out what action they would like to see taking place and to gain an understanding of the need for free period products on campus.
To support this work, we need your views, please could you complete the Period Provision on Campus survey.
If you would like to be kept updated with the group, please sign up to the Women’s Network here: https://www.upsu.com/representation/women/ and make sure to follow @menstruationandhealth_plym on Instagram