Huddersfield Students’ Union have scrapped the VAT on sanitary products after an idea posted on Your Big Ideas brought the issue to light.

Student, Georgina Wall, posted the idea on 25 February and said: “It’s common sense what we’re doing, the idea that we even tax things like this is ridiculous anyway.

“When I found out it had been approved I was absolutely buzzing because I feel like I’ve been able to help towards the push to see the tax dropped nationally.”

The Union will absorb the cost of the current 5% VAT rate that is leveraged on sanitary products which are currently deemed as ‘non-essential’ goods despite the reality that they are clearly essential for women.

Success

The move also see the Students’ Union follow in the footsteps of other Unions across the country that have absorbed the cost of VAT while a Change.org petition with over 200,000 signatures continues to grow and put pressure on the Government to implement a change at a national level.

Putting the idea online was the first step for Georgina in getting involved with the Students’ Union before being successfully elected as the next Women’s Rep during this year’s SU Elections and she added: “The fact I started the petition before running for Women’s Rep showed people that I wanted to be involved and it means a lot to me that I’ve been elected. It also gives me a great opportunity to have more of a say.”

The change is the latest idea to have successfully been implemented thanks to Your Big Ideas. The module gives students the opportunity to voice the change they’d like to see on campus and fellow students then vote on the idea. Once the idea reaches a pre-set threshold it is then sent to the relevant committee to be discussed such as Union Council where policy is then formed to help make the change happen.

Got an issue that you feel is important? Want to see change take place? Then post your idea now by clicking here.