Period products freely available to students across all campuses and at home
Dublin City University and DCU Students’ Union have joined to provide free period products to students on-campus and off.
The initiative will see period products freely available to students in all ground floor women’s bathrooms and within gender neutral bathrooms across both DCU Glasnevin & St. Patrick’s Campus. The products are further available from the Students’ Union and DCU Health Centre directly.
A postal service has been devised for students who are unable to access the products on campus. Reusable period products will also be made available to those students in financial distress who would like to access such products.
Speaking on the initiative, DCU Students’ Union Vice-President for Wellbeing, Dean O’Reilly said:
“Students’ Unions across the country have long-provided free period products to students. This is an initiative that students want and that students need. The general distribution of these products through discrete and public locations brings us closer to our ultimate goal of dismantling period poverty and stigma.
Our postal service ensures that all students, including many of our students on placement and those with health and accessibility concerns, have access to the products they need.”
Speaking on the partnership, Dr. Claire Bohan, Director of DCU Student Support & Development said:
“Our mission in DCU is to transform lives and society. No student should ever have to worry about access to basic necessities. By providing this service, we are taking one more concern out of their lives and are helping those students who need this service focus on the things that matter most at University - learning, building lifelong friendships and developing themselves to their fullest potential. Today, with the launch of these services, we hope no student ever has to worry about their period again. That certainly will transform their lives.”
DCU Students’ Union highlighted the need for an expansion of these services across the country. VP for Wellbeing, Dean, said:
“We have seen many of our colleagues launch similar initiatives including UCD and MTU. The Minister for Further & Higher Education has also supported these initiatives. That being said, we need widespread governmental support and will for public access to free period products. Despite being in the Programme for Government, the current Free Provision of Period Products Bill 2021 has not progressed since February 2021.
The Free Provision of Period Products Bill 2021 does not go far enough to guarantee that products will be available in public institutions. We need to see these products in secondary schools, in further and higher education, in government buildings, in public libraries - all over the country. Legislation such as Senator Moynihan’s proposed bill is closer to this aim.
DCU SU hopes to see progressive movement in this area to ensure that period products become as commonplace as hand sanitiser, soap, and toilet paper.”