Duties to ensure period products are obtainable free of charge
I31Provision of free period products: Department scheme
1
The Department must ensure that period products are obtainable free of charge (in accordance with arrangements established and maintained by the Department) by all persons who need to use them.
2
The period products obtainable free of charge by a person under such arrangements are to be sufficient products to meet the person’s needs while in Northern Ireland.
3
Arrangements established and maintained under subsection (1)—
a
must include provision under which period products are obtainable by another person on behalf of the person who needs to use them;
b
may, where they include provision under which period products may be delivered to a person, require the person to pay costs associated with packing and delivery (except where the person could not reasonably obtain products in accordance with the arrangements in any other way).
I14
The Department must consult on the arrangements to be established and maintained by it under subsection (1), including—
a
the ways in which users of period products ought to be able to obtain period products free of charge;
b
the locations in which period products ought to be obtainable free of charge; and
c
the types of period products which ought to be obtainable free of charge.
5
The Department must publish a written statement describing—
a
the consultation conducted under subsection (4); and
b
the arrangements to be established and maintained under subsection (1).
6
The Department must publish information about the locations where free period products are obtainable in such ways as it thinks appropriate to bring that information to the attention of persons who need to use period products or may need to use period products in the future.
7
The Department must do so within one year of establishing the arrangements under subsection (1) and on at least an annual basis thereafter.
8
For the purposes of subsection (2), the needs of a person who lives in Northern Ireland are to be regarded as all arising while in Northern Ireland.
I29
In this section, “the Department” means the Executive Office.