East Midlands children facing hygiene poverty
There's fears a rise in students missing lessons could be to come in the new school year due to hygiene poverty
We can reveal that a fifth of teachers in the East Midlands are aware of students facing hygiene poverty.
Teachers in the region say they've seen a rise in students without access to laundry detergent or sanitary products, just the basic essentials.
We've been speaking to Ruth Brock, the CEO of the Hygiene Bank, who have projects across the East Midlands, including in Newark, and the city of Nottingham, Market Harborough and Lutterworth and Derby.
She says this can have damaging effects upon young people:
"The shame and the embarrassment of hygiene poverty is causing great difficulties in pupils.
"Children asking to sit on their own instead of the peers, children being bullied and isolated because of the way they look.
"No child can learn unless they're fed and clean and comfortable and having their basic needs met. We need children to be back in classes in September feeling clean and comfortable and ready to learn."
She added that some families are in dire need of help of everyday items:
"Some simply can't afford the basics that we all rely on in our day to day lives to feel clean and look professional and be ready for our day; shampoo, detergents, soap, laundry detergent, toothpaste, toothbrushes, nappies, all of those things."
As pupils prepare to return to school post summer holidays, new research has uncovered a disturbing and growing crisis in UK schools, of children are being forced to miss school simply because they lack access to basic hygiene essentials.
New research with primary and secondary state-school teachers, commissioned by household challenger brand smol, with support from national charity, The Hygiene Bank, reveals that hygiene poverty is leading to significant absenteeism, social exclusion, and long-term emotional damage for UK school children.
In the East Midlands
A survey of primary and secondary state-school teachers in the East Midlands, paints a stark picture of hygiene poverty in the region:
- A fifth (20%) of teachers in the East Midlands say they are aware of students facing hygiene poverty.
- A third (31%) of teachers in the East Midlands report that children in their schools are missing between 1-3 days of learning in a school year due to hygiene poverty.
- Worryingly almost all of those teachers in the East Midlands (91%) admit it is leading to the pupil being bullied.
Teachers estimate nearly three million children in the UK are experiencing, or have experienced, hygiene poverty, with pupils missing an average of 6.5 school days per year as a direct result, equating to over 23 million lost learning days annually.
Almost all teachers surveyed (91%) believe this will have lasting consequences on children’s lives, from deteriorating mental health and social isolation to an impact on future employability.
The scale of the problem is increasing, with a 68% year-on-year surge in state schoolteachers reporting daily instances of pupils experiencing hygiene poverty.
Teachers shared harrowing accounts of students arriving in unwashed uniforms, wearing the same clothes for weeks, or bursting into tears when asking for basic items like soap.
To address this urgent issue, the Marked Absent campaign has been developed and funded by smol in partnership with The Hygiene Bank with a striking visual display in London featuring real uniforms donated by children living in hygiene poverty.
The installation aims to raise awareness and drive donations to provide free laundry facilities in schools, with a resounding 95% of teachers agreeing such services would make a significant difference in tackling this issue.
The campaign also encourages communities to speak openly about hygiene poverty to help tackle the stigma.
smol is also encouraging people to write to their MP ahead of the Government’s Child Poverty Strategy launch, demanding systemic support for hygiene access in schools.