Menstrual Health Education
My research with 16-19 year olds shows that menstrual education in school is not meeting the needs of young people.
Although young people are talking more about menstruation than before, many still experience embarrassment which leads to them struggling to ask for support and, when necessary or desired, to share their menstrual experiences.
As I show in The Menstrual Movement in the Media: Reducing Stigma and Tackling Social Inequalities (2025), girls and other young people who menstruate still have limited knowledge about menstrual health, and this is negatively impacting their health, wellbeing, and experiences of healthcare. Since education in schools is often still limited to biology, can be rushed and/or delivered by a teacher who seems embarrassed, many teenagers rely on social media which can lead to young people absorbing harmful misinformation about menstrual health.
The young people in my research believed that, to reduce menstrual stigma and to ensure that women and others who menstruate are supported effectively, men must be included in education and conversations about menstruation. The young men in my research were unsure how to talk about menstruation in mixed gender groups but expressed enthusiasm for learning about how they could talk about menstruation in a non-stigmatising way and how they could effectively support girls and other young people who menstruate.
Young people of colour from faith groups feel the most excluded and underserved by formal education on menstruation.
Current Menstrual Education Projects:
Primary School Curriculum
Faith-Inclusive Menstrual Health Education for Muslim and Sikh communities
Primary School
Menstrual Health Curriculum
This project is a collaboration with Belszki
(primary teacher, feminist theatre maker and performer)
Please email maria.tomlinson@sheffield.ac.uk or fill in the boxes below to receive a copy of the report.
Please get in touch if you are interested in using this curriculum or training others how to deliver it. We can run a training session for free in your primary school, secondary school, or (curriculum can also be adapted for year 7)
I am writing a book (with KE partners including Belszki and Acushla Young) - Knowledge Exchange and Menstrual Equity (Bloomsbury) - in which I am exploring this curriculum and its impact. So if you are using it, do please let me know for impact monitoring purposes and you may be able to write something in the book! (a great way to promote your work and demonstrate the value of menstrual education).
Based on what the teenagers in my research wished they had learned at primary school and Belszki's experience in performance and tackling stigmatised subjects, we created a primary school menstrual education curriculum of 5 lessons for years 5 and 6 (aged 9-11).
Belszki has already delivered this curriculum in our trial school and it has received outstanding feedback from pupils and staff. These lessons have created a more open and inclusive culture around periods in the school, helped girls to feel more prepared for their periods, to be more confident to discuss periods, and to be better informed about menstrual health. They also learned how to use a wide range of period products (including reusables) and recognise typical/atypical menstrual pain. They also learned about menstrual inequities such as period poverty. It has also improved boys' knowledge about periods and encouraged them to be allies.
Please fill in the form below or email me (maria.tomlinson@sheffield.ac.uk) and I will send you the report via email (it may take a few days).
Don't hesitate to get in touch if you do not hear from me within two weeks
Faith-Inclusive
Menstrual Health Education
This project is a collaboration between DiverseCity Development Trust, Cysters and Irise International which seeks to empower Muslim and Sikh communities through community consultations, menstrual health workshops, tailored menstrual health resources, and creating community menstrual health champions.
We have hired women from Muslim and Sikh communities to deliver menstrual health education to women in their local areas which includes delivering workshops and then training other women to be menstrual health champions.
After consulting with Muslim communities in Sheffield and Rotherham about what they would like to learn about periods and menstrual health, we have created 4 menstrual health resources on the following topics
1) Period pain management and self-care
2) How to ask for help (e.g. advocating for yourself at the doctors')
3) Menstrual Health and Nutrition
4) Period products
Please send me an email or fill in the box above if you would like to receive free copies of these resources.