Teen’s mission to help beat period poverty
Sitting at her trusty sewing machine Paige Holland continues her selfless mission to wipe out period poverty at her school.
The 13-year-old’s campaign began two years ago when she made the shock discovery that one in f ive women in Scotland can’t afford sanitary products.
Determined that not one pupil at Kilmarnock Academy should have to go without, Paige stitched 22 large drawstring bags for the school to fill with tampons and towels and which now hang in all the school’s toilets.
Last summer, the teenager decided to go a step further and spent six weeks making individual bags for the new intake of S1 pupils.
Paige, who spends break and lunch times replenishing the bathroom bags, buys all the fabric herself and in return the school makes a donation to the Schiehallion ward at Glasgow’s Sick Kids Hospital.
The third- year pupil’s dedication to eradicating period poverty in her school has earned her a nomination for a Sunday Mail Young Scot Award in the Health & Wellbeing category.
Paige was invited to the Scottish Parliament last month to talk about her venture with MSP Aileen Campbell.
Paige said: “It wasn’t until I started high school that I heard about period poverty I was horrified to learn girls were not coming to school when they had their period as they could not afford sanitary products.
“I asked my guidance teacher if I could make bags to hang in the bathrooms which would be filled with tampons and sanitary towels as this would save the embarrassment of going to ask office staff for the key to the medical room, where products were stored. These have been a great success and my friends and I go round at break to makem sure they are always fully stocked. I also repair them when theyth get worn.” The keen Highland dancer, who lives in Kilmarnock with paralegal mum Kirsty, 42, engineer dad Steven, 43, and sisters Lauren, 15, and Brooke, 11, added: “I wanted to do more and last June I asked my guidance teacher if I could make individual bags for the new S1 girls. It took me all summer but I stitched all 128 for the start of term.
“I gave them out at a special school assembly and the new girls all loved them. The post on Twitter by the school received the most comments ever. I plan the same this year.”
In August 2018 the Scottish Government became the first in the world to make sanitary products available free to all of its 395,000 pupils and students in a £5.2million scheme to fight period poverty. Labour MSP Monica Lennon has lodged a bill at Holyrood, which if it passes, will ensure free access to sanitary products for all women in Scotland.
Paige started sewing as an eight-yearold to raise money for Yorkhill, where older sister Lauren spent seven months being treated for leukaemia.
Mum Kirsty said: “I am very proud of my daughter and all that she has done.” l Do you know someone as kindhearted as Paige? Gotowww.youngscotawards.com and nominate them. Winners will be announced at a glittering ceremony at Edinburgh’s EICC on April 23.
They’ve been a great success. My friends and I keep them fully stocked