Our Positive Periods Program is successfully tackling Period Poverty all over the world

What is our Positive Periods Program?


How it all started


Where are we now

We have now delivered our Positive Periods Program in 4 countries. Starting in Sierra Leone, then in The Gambia, followed by Cuba, and now in Haiti. Each country has taken the foundations of the project and made it their own, completely in keeping with the Steve Sinnott Foundation’s mission to work and collaborate together with other cultures and respect that each area will have its own needs and ways of best tackling a challenge.

Here is an outline of how each country has done this, making our Positive Periods Program the most diverse and effective program for enabling women and girls in diverse parts of the world. Managing periods, gender equality, sexual health, and violence, all affect girls ability to access education, and our programme is flexible enough to help girls challenge these issues.

The Gambia

The Foundation has been working with teachers and educators in The Gambia and Sierra Leone over the past 3 years to pilot a project to enable girls who miss 50 days a year due to having their menstrual period access to reusable period pads. We have called this project “Positive Periods”.


We were invited by the Gambia Teachers Union (GTU) initially to pilot this project and since then we have carried out research on the most effective and sustainable way for all girls to access this opportunity.


To tailor this program to the unique needs of girls the organisers have added in a module to raise awareness of sexual violence and gender equality.


The teachers who have had this training are cascading this training throughout their schools.



Sierra Leone

In Sierra Leone, Isata M Kamara (project Manager) working with the Sierra Leone Teachers Union (SLTU) and other community groups has hosted this programme in over 60 schools this year in Makeni, Port Loko, Bo and Kenema.

 

Despite the COVID19 outbreak leading to the closure of schools affecting the implementation of this training taking place in schools, the teachers were determined to ensure the Positive Periods Program did not stop altogether.


Boys and girls, and women and men were all involved in the workshops. They were trained in using both their hands and sewing machines to ensure that that everyone in their various schools could prepare the sanitary pads themselves and cascade this to others.


The training was initially based on health and hygiene, how to take care of themselves, and how to take care of the pads. But as the girls in her workshops talked to Isata about their problems and challenges, she realised that there was more that needed to be done. They asked for training to support themselves and their teachers on the gender-based violence and equality issues that are affecting them in their schools and community. So the organisers have now devised an additional module to raise awareness of sexual violence and gender equality to these workshops.

 

Plans for the future: Everyone is learning together and supporting each other, women and men, boys and girls. There is still much work to do and the team are now working on the most sustainable way of sharing the learning with other schools and communities across rural Sierra Leone.



Cuba

In March 2021 we started the Cuba Positive Periods Programme, named “Iniciativa Duenas” which is part of our initiative to train people in the preparation of reusable sanitary pads or intima as they are called in Cuba. The project is about how to make re-usable pads using sustainable, reusable and washable, long lasting and eco-friendly material. There were also benefits for more senior women, for those who need support with incontinence, and following surgery. 

It incorporated discussion and learning across the generations with grandmas teaching their grandchildren.

 

The participants came together on-line from across 15 women's entrepreneurship and anti-racist struggle groups. They were instructed and communicated with each other through WhatsApp. These sessions took place from their homes, in the provinces of Havana and Santiago de Cuba. The workshops facilitated a space for conversation not only about how to make their own reusable period pads but also about menstrual health for young people.

 

These women will now spread this workshop in their own groups and encourage other women to share it too. This way it will reach more women than we could possibly reach alone.



Haiti

July 2021, in Haiti the project started a few days after the political situation became tense, you can read more about this in our blog post here. If that wasn’t enough during the project there was an earthquake, we ran an appeal for this too. We were not sure if the project would be able to start or continue due to these challenges, however the Haitian spirit shines in the face of any adversity, and they continued regardless. A lighthouse for us all to follow. This program also decided to add in a module of sexual health, pregnancy and gender rights, as that was a related topic very pertinent to the current needs of girls in Haiti right now.

 

Stelandie Jean-François, the young woman in charge started the session introducing the materials the girls would be using and the patterns that they will use to create their own re-usable pads. Her students had no experience sowing so they were learning this skill also. They are very excited to be getting hands on experience making period pads that will help them live a fuller life, and come to school every day.

 

In the meantime, the school nurses drafted the training modules that they will be using for the next phase, the educational sessions. This will ensure that girls and young women know more about menstruation and female health. This supports them to better manage and understand their menstrual health and wellbeing.

 

After this workshop was delivered, staff can be trained on the workshop, and how to deliver it in their respective schools. This way the knowledge is cascaded through to the wider community.



Thank you to our Sponsors

We could not carry out this work without the support of our sponsors Soroptimists International St Albans and District, London Chilterns, Leeds and Selby. NEU Districts and Branches and all the incredible individual donors who support us with regular giving and one-off gifts.


We have also recently secured generous funding from The Openwork Foundation, so we can continue to expand this program to other countries.


You can support here


Plans for the Future

We know this programme works, the feedback from participants has been very positive, they have been instrumental in improving and adapting the training. The most important impact has been the feedback from teacher’s that girls are now coming back to school and they feel they are able to talk about their periods more openly and share solutions.


We have learned that the programme can be replicated and adapted for different needs and it is giving women and girls a voice about other important issues such as gender-based violence. If you have equal access to education you have equal choices.


We are just waiting to roll out the programme in Malawi and Uganda, which has had to be be postponed due to Covid-19. We have 6 other countries waiting to start the programme and the teams are working on sustainability in each country. This project enables women and girls to manage their periods with dignity and pride, it’s a simple solution but we know it is a powerful one.


We hope you will continue to support us on this journey.



More blog posts about our Positive Periods campaign


Videos about our Positive Periods campaign

Steve Sinnott • October 20, 2021

Sustainable Development Goal 4

By Matthew Round • June 4, 2025
Defining Success in Education: Bridging Gaps for a Better Future Education is often seen as the gateway to personal and societal advancement through personal betterment. But defining success in education requires a deeper understanding than just academic achievement, it isn’t just about qualifications or certificates. Rather educational success is about ensuring access to learning that is inclusive, equitable and quality-driven. It’s about equipping students with critical thinking skills and the space to be creative. A quality education fosters holistic approaches, promoting emotional, social and intellectual growth. On a societal level, educational success is about ensuring we value and appreciate a society wide distribution of knowledge and skills; that diversity of thought can be just as important as orthodoxy. Ensuring Access to Education that Meets Individual Needs Traditional western forms of education based within on e-size-fits all models are inadequate in a world where learners have diverse backgrounds, abilities and needs. A shift is needed away from the top-down deficit model approaches which assume teaching and learning is transactional or akin to filling empty vessels, or as Paulo Freire described it, the Banking Model of teaching. Success in education will come from programmes that respect differences between individuals and across communities, using, for example, adaptive learning approaches. Additionally, integrating support for learners with neurodivergent needs or disabilities, as well as promoting (and indeed funding) digital literacy, can ensure that education is individual but also focused on the emancipatory effects of education. Gender and Racial Equity: The Pillars of Inclusive Education Gender and racial equity are crucial components of a successful education system and a founding component of Sustainable Development Goal 4. Although there has been significant progress here, disparities globally still persist. Barriers such as gender-based violence, early marriage and inadequate school infrastructure pose challenges for the international community. Similarly, racial inequality in education can manifest in various ways, from lower access to quality schooling to biased curricula that don't reflect diverse cultures or histories. To address these disparities, education systems should continue to develop policies that promote gender-sensitive curricula and address the specific needs of marginalised groups. Investing in female education, particularly in underserved areas such as sexual health, has been shown to create a ripple effect that benefits entire communities. Similarly, anti-racist educational frameworks can help to make sure that all students, regardless of their race or gender, receive the same opportunities to thrive. Creating a Better Future: What Needs to Be Done? Most importantly, we need to keep talking about SDG 4 — providing inclusive and equitable education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all. The more SDG4 is part of the global conversation the more likely it will become part of the taken for granted expectations of all countries and communities. The more academics like me discuss it in our lectures and have it in assignments, likely the more we are to normalise high quality, free primary and secondary education with our future global leaders. But more than this SDG4 should be at the heart of grass roots conversations, in every classroom, playground, and café. The more we talk about it the more a part of our global culture equitable access to education will become. Ultimately, success in education will not be defined by what certificates students attain, but by how well we equip individuals and communities to navigate and shape the world. Education should empower individuals, communities and nations to achieve their full potential, breaking down barriers that have traditionally limited access and opportunity. By striving for inclusivity, equity and quality, we can build a future where education truly is for everyone. BIOGRAPHY Dr Matthew Round is an academic and educator, who has worked with children from 3 years old to PhD students. Having been a science teacher, pastoral leader, and senior leader in schools in the UK, he now works in Higher Education and his current research focused on the emancipatory philosophies of Pierre Bourdieu and sex and sexuality education.

Allergy school: A New free educational programme to protect children with food allergies

By Tanya Ednan-Laperouse OBE • June 2, 2025
Every child deserves to feel safe and included at school but, sadly, that’s not always the case for children with food allergies. There are now around two children in every classroom with a diagnosed food allergy in the UK, and 20% of food allergic reactions occur in schools. Yet new research by the NASUWT teachers’ union, in collaboration with The Natasha Allergy Research Foundation, has exposed the barriers faced by too many of children with food allergies, which can leave them feeling excluded and isolated. The survey of almost 1,900 teachers revealed that 67% have had no allergy awareness training. One in five teachers has never been taught how to administer an adrenaline auto-injector which could save a life in a food allergy emergency, and almost two thirds (60%) don’t know or are unsure of their school even has an allergy policy. Despite a huge rise in allergies in the UK, there is no specific mandated guidance on how children with food allergies should be supported or how and when staff and team leaders should be trained. There is no funding for this either. That’s why Natasha’s Foundation, the UK’s food allergy charity, has created Allergy School. The £1 million, national programme for teachers offers nurseries, primary schools and out-of-school clubs and groups a suite of free resources, including films, engaging lesson plans and assembly packs and a self-assessment to see how allergy friendly they currently are. All are mapped into the National Curriculum to make them easy to use for all age groups. The resources also introduce Arlo, the friendly, food-allergic armadillo – a puppet which helps to educate children about food allergies in a positive and engaging way. The free resources, for children aged 3 to 11, are available at www.allergyschool.co.uk Allergy School has been developed in partnership with The King’s Foundation, St John Ambulance, the children’s charity Coram Life Education and Tesco Stronger Starts. It has received messages of support from His Majesty, The King and the Government, as well as schools, teachers and parents.  His Majesty, King Charles said: “Improving understanding of this issue is so important for keeping children with food allergies safe and ensuring they are able to participate fully in activities at school or in our wider communities.” The aim of Allergy School is to transform understanding of food allergies in schools so that children with food allergies feel empowered, included and protected. I know from personal experience that it can be really hard to keep a child with food allergies safe in school. My daughter Natasha was diagnosed with food allergies as a young child and finding a nursery where she would be safe was extremely difficult. When she started school aged 5, it was only when she had a severe allergic reaction to milk on a school trip to the zoo that staff finally took her food allergies seriously. Natasha died when she was just 15 from a food allergy to sesame. She ate a baguette sandwich that didn’t list sesame seeds on the food label, but they had been baked into the dough of the bread, invisible to the eye. Had the baguette been labelled properly, Natasha would not have eaten it, and she would be alive today. Natasha’s death put us on a mission to campaign for change. Government, schools, teachers, parents and pupils need to come together to support children with food allergies in this country. Our new Allergy School programme will transform levels of awareness and understanding of food allergies in a positive and engaging way for all children. BIOGRAPHY Tanya Ednan-Laperouse OBE, founded The Natasha Allergy Research Foundation, the UK’s food allergy charity, with her husband Nadim after their daughter Natasha died aged 15 from an allergic reaction to food in 2016. In 2021, Natasha’s Law came into force which improved food labelling. The charity funds medical research and campaigns for a safer world for people with food allergies. Tanya has been awarded an OBE in recognition of her services to people with allergic disease.

I believe in you.

By Vanessa Herder • May 30, 2025
We reach success in education if all people know exactly how to live up to their potential. This requires not only formal knowledge and learning, it includes a deep understanding of self through introspection. The secret sauce of a successful education includes information, sometimes encyclopaedic knowledge as well as an awareness of our own desires, experiences, passions and aspirations. Successful education happens when a beautifully open mind meets critical thinking; and when connecting the dots leads to problem solving and openness to the wonders of the world. I am not talking about a romantic setting: give everyone a book and they can study by themselves and all will be good. Successful education goes beyond school and formal education. It comes from people who challenge us or make us do things we don’t want to, from different situations, personal struggles or an inspiring influence. These are opportunities to thrive and suddenly we realize we went beyond what we think we can do and we outgrow our own expectations - thanks to other people. We meet excellent teachers in our family, within our group of friends, at our internet community or at school or university and we learn from and with them and they inspire us - these people have an impact on us. I call this ‘people-associated learning’ and consider it the most profound and life-changing education method. What is the opposite of successful education? If we stop learning, if we don’t accept that the only constant in life is change. By reaching a point where we say, ‘I know it all’, we have failed. Successful education teaches that we always evolve and this comes with continuous learning and development. This makes us fit for the future and enables us to adapt to always new circumstances. It is about being able to divorce a previous idea and embrace a new one, it is the ability to change. We constantly receive input from our educators and rely on them. A worthwhile goal in successful education is to reach a degree of independence and freedom to educate ourselves with the aim to share our knowledge with other people. This is a wonderful path, however, not an easy journey. If someone is believing in us, it is much easier to go the way we want to go - despite obstacles. With the help of others, we will have the courage to overcome all the speed bumps and setbacks and we will have the guts to educate ourselves. Nothing is better, makes us happier and contributes better to the world than fulfilling what our purpose is. This belief in us is by someone who is around us & makes all the difference: they can challenge us, they see achievements in us which we yet to cannot see, and they see of how much more we are capable of. Go and find the people in your life, who tell you this one lifechanging sentence: I believe in you. BIOGRAPHY Vanessa Herder is a scientist working at The University of Glasgow in Scotland. Her work studies the early immune response of virus infections aiming to understand what drives a severe and lethal outcome versus a mild disease. She did her PhD in multiple sclerosis research, followed by a doctoral thesis about a virus infection causing brain malformations. She is a trained veterinarian and after finishing her specialisation in veterinary pathology in Germany, she moved to Glasgow to focus on the pathogenesis of systemic and respiratory virus infections, including SARS CoV-2 and influenza virus.