Queen’s Jubilee birthday honours: Period poverty campaigner recognised

A period poverty campaigner from West Yorkshire has been appointed MBE in the Queen's Jubilee birthday honours.

Tina Leslie, from Leeds, founded the Freedom4Girls charity in 2016 to improve access to sanitary products for women in the UK, Uganda and Kenya.

Ms Leslie said it was "a great honour" to be recognised and hoped it would help normalise conversations about the issue.

She said she had accepted the honour for the people the charity represented.

"For me personally, it's a great honour to be recognised for all the things we've been fighting for since I founded the charity," she said.

"It continues to be a massive issue, so actually I feel like I'm the voice for the people who don't have a voice.

"And that's why I'm accepting the award, because actually it's not about me, it's about the people we represent."

Ms Leslie said she hoped the honour would make people more aware of the problem.

"In 2022, we shouldn't still be secretive about periods," she said.

"It's a natural bodily function that half the population have. So why are we still shying away from the issue?"

The charity said it had seen an increase in people asking for period products and warned those who were struggling to afford the products often ended up using unhealthy alternatives.

Ms Leslie said rising costs were also having an impact.

"If you can't afford food, you can't afford period products. End of. It's getting worse by the week, I would say."

A recent survey by WaterAid suggested nearly a quarter (24%) of women who menstruate in the UK said they or their family had struggled to afford period products in the last year.

Other people from West Yorkshire to be recognised in the Queen's Jubilee birthday honours include Ossett-born Coronation Street star Helen Worth.

The 71-year-old has played Gail Platt since 1974 and was appointed MBE for services to drama.

She said to be honoured for something she had enjoyed so much was "truly wonderful".

Meanwhile, Joanne Harris MBE, the author of Chocolat, who lives near Huddersfield, has been appointed OBE, while David Nixon, former artistic director at Leeds-based Northern Ballet, has been appointed CBE.

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