From 2008 to 2019 kits has been sent to over one and a half million girls in 145 countries.
That's an astonishing need!
Our intellect tells us that this is a major problem. But psychic numbing comes into force - to miss-quote Josef Stalin " a million girls needing D4G kits is a statistic, 1 girl needing one is a tragedy"
Each kit makes a difference to one girl, and therefor to her family and to her village
Each girl gets:
(see below for more info about each item, and the
Days For Girls website here)
- a drawstring bag
- two pairs of knickers
- a small bar of soap
- a flannel
- two shields
- eight liners
- a transport bag to bring soiled items home for washing
- a record card
We only use new fabrics, and we use dark but pretty 100% cotton. The items are designed to last for 3 years but we know of some that have lasted for 5 years. There are very strict quality requirements to ensure the kits last as long as possible, and there are certain fabrics we cannot use as we have to be sensitive to cultural concerns.
At Wraysbury Stitch people often bring us fabric they want to donate, but this is frequently second hand or inappropriate for other reasons. We don't want to refuse people's kind offers so we use them to make
Boomerang bags which we sell to help us pay for the fabric and other components of the kit.
The kits cost about £8.70 to make - some of this goes on knickers and flannels and soaps, and some on fabric and ribbons. We also need to send the kits to the areas that need them: this means either paying postage or paying for extra luggage if someone is going to an area where they are needed. A medium size suitcase can take about 50 kits.
What each component is for:
The drawstring bag - can be used all year as a book bag or for carrying other items
The two pairs of knickers - full pants. Some girls don't own any until they get their kit
The small bar of soap - for personal hygiene and for washing their kit
The flannel - for personal hygiene. Cheap flannels are better as the luxurious ones take a lot of hand washing to get the soap out
The two shields - these are + shaped and popper under the knickers. There is a pocket front and back. They are lined with a product called PUL which prevents moisture seeping through
The eight liners - these are made from two layers of brushed cotton which absorbs the waste. They tuck into the shield pockets and girls can use one, two or even three if required.
The transport bag to bring soiled items home for washing - these were, until recently, zip lock plastic bags but some third world countries (where most kits are distributed) have banned plastic bags with a £400 fine or a month in prison. The charity is trialing different designs of PUL transport sacks
The record card - this shows the girls how to record the first date of their period each month and how to be able to predict it each month. Pictorial instructions for how to use the kit is on the back
