A ‘Period Dignity’ project is being rolled out across Cork City today by the Lord Mayor of Cork. Cllr. Deirdre Forde, along with Cork City Council’s Women’s Caucus Chair Cllr. Mary Rose Desmond and members of the Women’s Caucus. Research shows that 50% of young Irish women have experienced issues around affording sanitary products.

Phase one of the new pilot project includes the installation of eight sanitary units, containing complimentary sanitary pads and tampons. This pilot project spans across several council sites including libraries, homeless services and the City Hall campus.

The locations of the 8 units are:

1. Cork Foyer Blackpool
2. Hollyhill Library
3. Mayfield Library
4. Glanmire Library
5. Douglas Library
6. Ballincollig Library
7. City Library Library
8. City Hall Campus

This initiative is jointly led by the Women’s Caucus and Cork City Council’s Corporate Affairs and International Relations and Community Culture and Placemaking directorates and is co- funded by the Department of Health under the Healthy Ireland Initiative.

Lord Mayor of Cork said:

As the Lord Mayor of Cork and a proud member of the Women’s Caucus, I am incredibly honoured to launch this initiative today with the Chair of the Women’s Caucus, Cllr Mary Rose Desmond. This pilot project highlights the work that the caucus aims to achieve, helping to combat the issue of cost surrounding sanitary products. To this day, a certain stigma continues to be associated with periods, with a poor cultural understanding and education within our society. I am optimistic that this pilot will help break that stigma and help those in Period poverty across the city.

The initiative seeks to combat the deprivations associated with period dignity and is strongly connected to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, of which were launched in 2015 as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development “Transforming our World” strategy. The pilot project is liked to SDG 1 (no poverty), SDG 3 (good health and well-being), SDG 4 (quality education), SDG 5 (gender equality), and SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation) highlighting City Council’s and the Caucus’s aim to promote a society of equal opportunity for women.

This pilot was designed based on extensive international research in countries such as Scotland, England, Wales, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.

Cork City Council’s Women’s Caucus are working to implement further exciting initiatives and successful interventions in 2023 and look forward to working with the Department of Health in the future to build on the new pilot project.

Notes

In 2019, according to CSO figures, 17.8% of people were living in enforced deprivation in Ireland, with women more likely to experience enforced deprivation. It is estimated that Irish women and girls spend an average of €132 every year on tampons and sanitary towels. Fifty percent of young Irish women have experienced issues around affording sanitary products.

The period dignity pilot project is aimed for all types of women by providing free products for all women will help prevent people having to make dehumanising choices such as wearing the wrong product, worse quality product or wearing one for longer than is hygienic or safe. It will encourage young people to attend school, increase participation in sport, support good health and most importantly allow individuals maintain dignity with the reassurance of knowing products are available if needed unexpectedly.

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