Girls miss more school or college days due to periods than any other reason – including colds, mental health or truancy, according to a new report. Periods cause girls to be absent from school or college for three days a term on average, compared with colds and flu (2.6 days), mental health (1.9 days) and truancy (1.2 days), the data released by washroom provider phs Group has revealed. This equates to 54 lost education days over the course of their teen years, the equivalent of 11 academic weeks. The findings form part of phs Group’s Period Equality: Breaking the Cycle report, now in its third year, for which Censuswide polled 1,262 girls aged 13-18 years across the UK. The majority (82%) cited cramps as the main reason for this, while almost one in five (19%) said they stay away from lessons because they’re embarrassed about being on their period, and one in 12 (8%) said it’s because no period products were available to them. This is despite the introduction of period equality measures in recent years, designed to improve access to free period products in education settings. “It’s important to recognise that huge advances have been made in giving girls access to free period products in schools across the UK. What we must do now is close the gap between providing schools with all the products they need and getting them into the hands of any girls that need them, for whatever reason,” said Kelly Greenaway, period equality lead at phs Group. “We know from our own data providing schools with products, that they have more than enough for their girls, so we need to tackle the misconceptions around free access to products in washrooms, and the stigma and shame that goes hand-in-hand with failing to have open conversations about menstruation.” Since the launch of the Government’s Period Product Scheme in January 2020, which provides free period products to education settings in England, via phs Group, 99% of secondary schools and 94% of post-16 organisations have ordered products through the scheme. However, the report published today highlights how periods remain a barrier to education for many girls – with the number of girls missing school due to their periods almost the same for the 2023 findings (54%) as the findings in 2019 (52%), before free sanitary product schemes were introduced. Despite the roll-out of such schemes, over half (52%) of the students surveyed said they did not find period products freely available in their school and college settings, while one in seven (14%) said they did not know if they were available. To help tackle the issue and raise awareness, phs Group is launching a new period equality podcast – called The Blobcast: Free The Period – hosted by menstrual wellbeing and confidence educator Kasey Robinson. Robinson said: “I know too well about the barriers facing so many of us when it comes to our menstrual health. It’s simply not enough to blame absenteeism figures on access to products alone. “On the ground, the story is clear: we aren’t being educated, supported and informed enough about periods. Menstruation is still a taboo subject, and our experience is a secret to keep to ourselves and something we feel forced to hide. In education settings, this is leading to more and more girls staying away from school. “Without workshops, learning resources and the support for and from teachers and caregivers, this issue will stay the same, or get worse,” Robinson added. “It should not be a revolutionary act to teach people about periods, it’s a right. We need to break the cycle of shame and encourage open and honest conversations about periods – exactly what The Blobcast is seeking to do.” The Blobcast: Free The Period launches on all free streaming platforms on October 18. More information can be found at www.phs.co.uk/TheBlobcast.

A state-owned Chinese newspaper issued a rare rebuttal of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. research after the securities firm’s

The decision by the Dutch VVD leader is a blow for Mr Wilders' bid to form a majority government.

Gary Lineker has come out swinging for Elon Musk over his management of Twitter. In an interview with the Guardian, the sports pundit said the tech mogul was bad at running the social media platform, and called him "rubbish". He said: "As for Elon Musk, I think perhaps the most interesting thing for me is that, for someone that’s spent so much money on Twitter, he is actually not very good on Twitter. He’s rubbish. I think that’s quite amusing.” Musk bought the platform last year and since doing so has been criticised for making a number of unpopular changes like making people pay for their blue ticks and renaming Twitter 'X' recently. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Elsewhere in the interview, Lineker slagged off TalkTV and GB News. “I’m obviously not a fan," he said. "And they don’t seem very good at telly. What I’m always staggered by is the incredible lack of anything that approaches any kind of quality broadcasting. I’m not just talking about it in terms of political bias, I’m talking about the quality of the television that’s rubbish.” He also said the BBC should stop trying to placate its political opponents and said bosses spend too much time worrying about the views of people “who will hate you forever”. Lineker is not one to mince his words. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Maine is poised to launch an offshore wind program that would meet clean energy goals and produce enough power for about 900,000 homes from floating wind turbines in the Gulf of Maine

Billionaire Ronald Lauder, a powerful financial backer of the University of Pennsylvania, is threatening to cut off donations if the school doesn't do more to fight antisemitism, CNN has learned.

'I cherish you deeply and am immensely grateful to have you in my life, and for everything you do for Dream and me,' Rob wrote on Insta

The San Francisco Giants and Seattle Mariners struck up a trade centered on former All-Star A.J. Pollock, whose career the Giants hope to revive.With the Aug. 1 MLB trade deadline on the horizon, teams are getting their last-second deals in under the wire. The San Francisco Giants and Seattle Ma...

A federal appeals court in New Orleans says automaker Tesla did not infringe on its workers’ rights to unionize when it ordered employees at a California assembly plant to stop wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the United Auto Workers logo

By Wendell Roelf CAPE TOWN BRICS foreign ministers on Thursday asserted their bloc's ambition to rival Western powers

JLS's Aston Merrygold is known for his famous backflip move when performing on stage with his bandmates, but fans were reminded how dangerous the stunt can be when it went wrong and he took a tumble recently. While on stage at Sheffield's Utilita Arena for the band's final show of their 2023 tour, Merrygold could be seen with his fellow bandmates, Marvin Humes, JB Gill and Ortisé Williams as he stood on an extra step to gain some height and momentum for the signature move. However, he appeared to misjudge the flip as he instead slipped causing him to fall and land on his back. Though proving his professionalism, Merrygold immediately styled it out with a backwards floor roll and got up to join his bandmates again to continue the choreography as the band sang their song 'Hottest Girl in the World'. Since then, Merrygold has been getting roasted on social media with people dubbing him as "Aston Merryfold" and "Aston Merryold" while fans have praised how he recovered like a pro but were concerned about whether he was hurt from the tumble. One person wrote: "In 15 years, I have never seen him fall over." "He could have really damaged his spine - hope he’s ok," another person said. Someone else added: "The way he just got up and continued absolute pro, I'd of been sitting there thinking what just happened, could have been so much worse." "Mistakes/accidents happen sometimes it’s normal!!! He did well to continue, I would have died inside/ walked off he’s amazing. Hope he’s ok," a fourth person commented. @sabs1951 Aston Merrygold back flip fail at convert. Aston falls on stage #fyp #foryou #mrslegge #sabs1951 #mmmilyc #jls #concert #fall #fail #follow #astonmerrygold #viralvideo #backflip #omg #pov Well, it appears Merrygold is feeling okay after his fall as he has since taken to TikTok to joke about the failed flip. The on-screen text read "Them: 'Aston, my friend said you fell last night'," as the JLS band member mimed the following audio from the 2015 film Legend. "Right listen, when you see him next, you tell him from me... F**k Charlie, f**k his brother, yeah. "And f**k that fat Georgie Cornell that hangs out with him. F**k your face. And f**k the f**king lot of you as well, what you think of that, eh?" In the caption, Merrygold added: "Their [sic] always here for the down FALL. Ast - 843, 274. Backflip - 1." @astonmerrygold Their always here for the down FALL 😅💀 Ast - 843,274 backflip - 1 In the comments section, fans applauded Merrygold for jesting about the failed stunt and also asked how's feeling after hitting the deck. One fan asked: "How’s your back and neck though bro?" to which Merrygold replied: "No lies I feel good, not sure how." "This made me laugh," another person wrote. Someone else added: "Taking the heat off JB for the Merry Christmas memes."backflip "This is the best comeback," a fourth person replied. How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Al Roker ditched the 'Today' show after handling the weather report on Monday, September 11 and Craig Melvin only said left for an assignment