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<p>On 16 April this year, the Government announced it will fully fund a scheme to
provide access to free period products in schools and colleges in England. We are
developing this scheme in conjunction with schools and 16-19 education providers to
ensure it best meets the needs of all learners. We are committed to encouraging the
use of sustainable products where possible and will work with stakeholders to explore
whether this can be integrated into the scheme. In addition, in light of the period
poverty initiative, NHS Supply Chain plans to widen the scope of the sanitary products
available to the NHS. This will include focusing on providing more sustainable, non-plastic
products such as menstrual cups and washable sanitary towels.</p><p> </p><p>The Resources
and Waste Strategy sets out the Government’s plans to reduce plastic pollution and
to move towards a more circular economy. The strategy outlines the actions we will
take to encourage producers to take more responsibility for the lifespan of their
products and make sure these are more carefully designed with resource efficiency
and waste prevention in mind. Our ambition is to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste
throughout the lifetime of the 25 Year Environment Plan, and for the most problematic
plastics we are going faster. We have already made good progress and will continue
to review the latest evidence on problematic products and materials to take a systematic
approach to reducing the use of unnecessary single-use plastic products.</p>
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