Period Poverty

Together we can help end period poverty in South Australia and we’re getting started by raising awareness within our community.

Period Poverty refers to the issue of women and girls lacking access to sanitary products, menstrual hygiene education, washing facilities and waste management.

A survey conducted by the South Australian Office of Commissioner for Children and Young people found 1 in 4 girls had missed out on attending school due to not having access to feminine hygiene products and 1 in 2 reported not having access to products or not knowing how to get access to products at school. In 2021, the South Australian Government pledged $450,000 over three years to provide hygiene products to girls in schools from year five onwards. This covered only 1250 young women annually, leaving a gap of thousands of girls without access to hygiene products, and in some cases, an education.

As a firm supporter in the fight against period poverty in South Australia, Kickstart for Kids launched a Period Poverty program in 2021 in which sanitary items would be distributed to the schools involved in their School Breakfast Program.

In a 2019 report by the Commissioner for Children & Young People, it was revealed that 74% of schools believe that access to sanitary products is an issue for their students, and in an additional 2020 report, 51% of respondents reported not having access to products or not knowing how to access sanitary products at school. Furthermore, the 2020 report revealed that 26% of participants had missed school because their families couldn’t afford sanitary items and many students reported feeling embarrassed about having their period due to the stigma surrounding periods.

KickStart for Kids is proud to say they now distribute over 1200 packets of sanitary items to over 200 local and regional schools every month, however demand is constantly increasing.

We are constantly calling on sanitary item donations, or monetary donations which are used to purchase sanitary items. Sanitary item donations can be dropped at the KickStart for Kids warehouse located at 87 James Melrose Rd, Novar Gardens 5040. Major supporter of KickStart for Kids, National Pharmacies, also has donation boxes in every statewide store.

Learn more about Period Poverty or make a monetary donation below.