Free sanitary products to be stocked by Scottish councils to fight period poverty The £4m initiative means free tampons will be available in leisure centres and libraries

Scottish councils are to be given millions of pounds to help them provide free sanitary products to women across the country, as part of efforts to reduce “period poverty”.

A total of £4m is being provided by the Scottish Government to help local authorities give the items away for free in public buildings such as libraries and leisure centres.

“Lots of women are using their own means which might not be hygienic, they are having to use loo roll or socks” The i politics newsletter cut through the noise Email address is invalid Email address is invalid Thank you for subscribing! Sorry, there was a problem with your subscription. Nicky McDonald, Move On

The scheme marks the expansion of a policy launched last year, when Scotland became the first country in the world offer free sanitary products to students in schools, colleges and universities.

The funding is being made available to councils immediately, with free products expected to become available to the public in the coming months.

Collectively, the funding is designed to address the issue of period poverty, which sees women on low incomes unable to afford to buy essential sanitary products such as tampons.

Unlike many other medical products, women’s sanitary items are still subject to 5 per cent VAT in the UK, despite repeated calls from campaigners to end the so-called “tampon tax”.

The new initiative was announced by Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell during a visit to the Move On centre in Glasgow, which distributes free sanitary products to people on low incomes.

“In a society as rich as Scotland, no one should have to suffer the indignity of not having the means to meet their basic needs,” she said.

“We also want to continue to reduce the stigma and address the overarching gender equality and dignity issues that affect everyone who menstruate, regardless of their income.”

Needs neglected

During her visit, Ms Campbell was told by staff that one woman used the £7 a month she saved through being given free sanitary products to pay for extra football training for her son.

“This is about the juggling act that many women and families are having to do in life, and often it will be their needs that will go to the bottom of the pile,” the minister added.

Last May the Scottish Government provided £500,000 to FareShare to expand access to sanitary products through its network of third sector partners, following a successful pilot in Aberdeen.

Nicky McDonald, family food service manager at Move On, said being able to access free sanitary products made a big difference to women on low incomes.

“Lots of women are using their own means which might not be hygienic, they are having to use loo roll or socks,” she said.

“It’s demeaning and it stops them from doing things, and for younger kids they don’t want to go to school and it has a knock-on effect.”

Celtic became the first football club in the UK to provide free sanitary products to female fans at the start of the current season, following a campaign by three supporters.