The Cambridge Period Project has secured free menstrual product provision for students across the University.

Following an extensive campaign waged by the student society in collaboration with Cambridge SU, the University has announced that free menstrual products will be made available in all colleges, departments and faculties.

Since 2021, free menstrual products have been available in all departments and faculties. This new decision by the Senior Tutors Committee extends that provision to all colleges, with the cost of the period products added to colleges’ bathroom spending budgets.

The Cambridge Period Project is a student society set up to achieve menstrual equity and alleviate period poverty in Cambridge. Their extensive campaigning efforts have included several surveys of all colleges and over 600 students, as well as an open letter with over 1,400 signatures delivered to the vice-chancellor.

The Cambridge Period Project said they were “delighted” with the success of their campaign, calling the decision a mark of a “significant shift in the cultural perception of menstruation” and said that it will “ensure that all colleges take the necessary steps towards securing equitable access to a reliable supply of menstrual products”.

They added that the move will improve the “wellbeing of 51.6% of menstruating students at this University” who find purchasing period products to be a “financial burden”.

Lydia Seed, president and founder of the Cambridge Period Project, said: “I am thrilled by this decision from the University. Having period products freely available in all public college bathrooms is a huge step towards eliminating the stigma associated with menstruation.

“I hope that the provision of free menstrual products throughout the University will set a precedent for other institutions throughout the UK, especially those with welfare responsibilities such as the NHS.”

Anjum Nahar, the SU’s postgraduate president, said: “I am incredibly proud to have successfully supported the Cambridge Period Project this year in making their case for free period products in colleges. This campaign win marks a culture shift in which the colleges are beginning to prioritize student wellbeing over cutting costs, and this decision will remove financial and administrative burdens from J/MCR officers, enabling them to better support students in their colleges.

Nahar added: “I look forward to working with the Cambridge Period Project in the future in distributing menstrual products, and holding the colleges to account on their promises.”