Woolston Community Primary School, Warrington

At Woolston Community Primary School we are committed to making sure we do our best by those children that walk through the front gates each morning. This means we are constantly reviewing our lesson content, our teaching styles and pastoral care practices.

We recently decided to review how we were teaching our children about the effects of puberty, and specifically, periods. The average age at which girls start their period has been coming down for years and we realised that some children were starting their period without being fully equipped with the right information. When we came across the betty for schools website we thought it had a really refreshing and innovative take on period education and felt the teaching resources were a real departure from any we had seen or used before for this topic. We’ve only been using the resources for a short time but have already noticed a difference in how the pupils are responding to the lessons, and in how confident the teachers are feeling about tackling them. 

Earlier this year we also had a visit from the betty bus, and I don’t think anyone could believe how much fun the children had and how engaged they were with the interactive lessons about periods. For the girls, visiting the bus was like going out on a school trip and yet they were so absorbed by the subject; the questions they asked, and the feedback they gave showed just how much they were really taking on board. 

As a result of using the betty for schools resources, the teachers at Woolston Community Primary School have decided to change the way we teach about periods, moving to mixed gender lessons rather than teaching boys and girls separately. 

Siobhan Bentley, deputy headteacher at Woolston Community Primary School, said: “The betty bus and betty for schools resources have proved incredibly beneficial for our students. We’ve noticed changes to their confidence and, among boys, their level of empathy. It’s a really powerful way of teaching and engaging with children and has helped our teachers feel more empowered to talk openly about periods. We would recommend these free resources to any teachers or schools looking for a new way to teach students about periods.” 

Chobham Academy, London
Joshua Avory, Director of Learning – Performing Arts 

At Chobham Academy we are proud to have been part of the betty for schools story from the very start, as several of our pupils starred in the classroom resources and videos. I think this involvement has made it an even easier ‘sell’ to the teachers and pupils in our school, but even without this I’m certain they would have gone down well as the resources bring such a fresh approach to this subject area. 

The teaching resources are all engaging and user friendly with a mixture of imagery, videos, and interactive elements. I think the fact that the target audience has been carefully considered with every part of the resources shines through.

Tackling issues around feminine healthcare has always been an issue for many teachers. The resources come from a different angle with the young person at the heart of what Betty are trying to achieve and I think this has made a real difference to the classroom experience for both the pupils and teachers. For us the betty for schools resources have been an incredible tool in helping pupils engage with the topic of periods and to stop thinking of them as something taboo.