Periods: Festivals need facilities at live events, says singer

"I've always taken for granted that you can't have your period at a festival, but why can't you?"

Musician Francesca Dimech, 37, from Cardiff, said she was "panicking" when she realised her period would coincide with a festival this summer.

She said she would normally delay her period with medication, but this time a pharmacist refused to prescribe it.

She is among a growing number of people calling for facilities for those menstruating at live events.

Francesca said: "It occurred to me, why am I changing my hormones... doing something drastic to my body just to go to a weekend festival?

"There should be facilities available and it's not like one festival... it's all of them."

The singer and actor said her period "was all she could think about" in the days leading up to Green Man Festival in Powys last month - she bought incontinence products and considered wearing nappies.

She described the portable loos as "unpleasant" with nowhere to dispose of used pads or tampons.

Francesca, who has been going to festivals since she was a teenager, now wants organisers to provide better facilities, including bins and running water nearby.

"I attempted to use my menstrual cup, which I always normally use, but you have to wash it and at the toilet there was no water nearby," she said.

"And the one which did have water was a communal space where people were cleaning their teeth."

The performer said it could be particularly difficult for people with fibroids and endometriosis like her, when they are faced with huge queues.

"I did consider using the disabled toilets and then I thought well why should I? I'm not disabled. I'm a woman, and this is a natural process that women go through, and we shouldn't have to use the disabled toilet."

Olivia Thomas, from the charity Swansea Takes on Period Poverty (STOPP) said the experience could be "dehumanising" and "daunting".

The 23-year-old said, with more events being held outdoors because of Covid-19, organisers needed to think about the amenities on offer.

"It's not a luxury, we just want an easy time," she said.

The Swansea University masters student said STOPP pushed for reusable products, but it was not feasible to use them and keep them clean with the facilities on offer.

"Clearly there isn't thought going into it... to provide safe and clean sinks, stalls people can use, we could provide products for people to make it a period-positive experience", she added.

Jo Barker and Tabby Horsfall are part of a group that provides those facilities at Shambala Festival in Northamptonshire.

The Red Sea Travel Agency is the UK's first menstrual space at a festival and includes sinks to wash reusable cups, a "squishy corner" with hot water bottles to provide comfort and workshops to educate people about menstruation.

"What we would really like to aspire to is that this is just a normal thing," they said.

The pair, who fit the work around full-time jobs, said it was important people who were bleeding felt comfortable at festivals and were not pushed into "dark, strange" portable toilets, "not really knowing what is going on".

Film-maker Ms Barker said the festival circuit was getting more diverse, but it "doesn't matter if they're ready or not, they just need to get on board... it's nothing new".

"Really simply, to have at least one or two toilets in every toilet block that is period-friendly in that it has a sink inside it with water, it had a light, and you can see what you're doing and that is the bare minimum that would change so much for menstruators ", she added.

Green Man festival said it was always looking at ways to improve facilities so everyone could feel comfortable.

"This was an unusual year due to Covid and infrastructure and logistics were hard to come by. We will be able to offer menstruation facilities for next year," it said.