Simcoe Muskoka schools supplying free menstrual products
BARRIE, ONT. -
Menstrual products will soon be available to all students across Ontario for free.
On Friday morning, Education Minister Stephen Lecce announced that the Ontario government has partnered with Shoppers Drug Mart for a three-year contract to provide free menstrual products to students.
Menstrual products will be distributed in all 72 school boards across the province, which can then be accessed by students in school washrooms free of charge.
Shoppers Drug Mart will pick up the menstrual products' cost and any dispensers required in student washrooms. School boards will be responsible to determine which schools should be prioritized in the distribution process.
LOCAL SCHOOL BOARDS
Last year, the Simcoe County District School Board (SCDSB) passed a motion to begin equipping washrooms with free menstrual products.
The board began providing all of its 14 secondary schools with a menstrual product dispenser, making the products available at no cost to students at the start of the fall semester in 2020.
The Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board (SMCDSB) have supported the movement and penned a letter to the Ontario government to begin providing free menstrual products last year. The SMCDSB says that they currently provide products to students who need them free of charge.
In June Bluewater District School Board voted to begin offering free menstrual products in school washrooms for students in Grades 4 to 12.
With files from CTV's Colin D'Mello
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