Part of 1. 1. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education – in the Senedd at 1:30 pm on 22 March 2017.
Thank you for your response, Minister, on behalf of the Cabinet Secretary. I’m sure you will be aware that a number of general questions are being asked in the sphere of education on this issue at the moment, particularly in Scotland, where there are efforts to make these products available free of charge in all schools, and there is a petition before Parliament in Westminster, as I understand it.
Now, when an inquiry was held by the previous children and young people’s committee, we looked into the educational outcomes for children from low-income households, and it’s true to say that this issue wasn’t raised as part of that inquiry, as I remember it. But, of course, it’s a very personal issue and something that is perhaps hidden and not openly discussed. Can the Minister confirm that, if a school were to use Welsh Government funding, such as the pupil deprivation grant, to pay for such products, in order to ensure that girls did feel comfortable and happy at school, or any other support to ensure that these products were available, the Government would support and encourage such an approach?