As an outdoor educator, I’ve spent years thinking about inclusion. It is something close to my heart, both personally and professionally.
Questions I am often asked – and regularly find myself reflecting on – are: how do we make outdoor learning accessible? How do we support different needs? How do we ensure that everybody feels they belong outdoors?
Yet one area that seemed to be largely missing from the conversation was menstruation.
When you think about it, that’s a striking omission. In the UK, approximately 50.7% of the population is female, and an estimated 15 million people are of reproductive age and may menstruate.¹²³ Menstruation is a normal part of life for a significant proportion of the population, yet it remains a topic that is often overlooked within outdoor learning.
Like many people who menstruate, I’ve experienced the reality that periods aren’t always as straightforward as the diagrams in school textbooks suggest. Some months bring very little disruption. Other times, symptoms such as cramps, fatigue or ovulation pain can have a real impact on comfort, energy levels and participation.
For a long time, I assumed this was normal.
It wasn’t until my forties that I was diagnosed with endometriosis, adenomyosis, fibroids, ovarian cysts and PCOS (now more commonly referred to as PMOS). Looking back, I can see how often I pushed through pain, discomfort and exhaustion because I thought it was simply something I had to tolerate.
There were times when my decisions outdoors were shaped not by what I wanted to do, but by concerns around managing my period. I vividly remember one summer course where I deliberately didn’t drink enough because there were no suitable toileting facilities. At the time, it felt like the easiest solution. Looking back, it highlights just how much access to toilets, privacy and menstrual support can influence participation, comfort and wellbeing outdoors.
At the same time, I know that many outdoor practitioners have had little or no education around menstrual health. They want to be supportive, but they don’t always know what to do, what products exist, or how to respond if a young person starts their period during a session.
When I started looking for resources specifically aimed at outdoor learning providers, I found surprisingly little.
There are excellent resources about menstrual health.
There are excellent resources about outdoor learning.
But very few that bring the two together.
That gap became even more apparent through conversations with practitioners, parents and participants. The same questions kept coming up:
- What should be in an outdoor menstruation kit?
- How do we support someone on expedition?
- What if a participant starts unexpectedly?
- What products are available now?
- How do we make conversations about periods feel normal rather than awkward?
Those questions led to the creation of Supporting Menstruation in Outdoor Learning: A Practical Guide for Outdoor Educators, Forest School Leaders and Adventure Providers, alongside a podcast conversation with Cara de Mello exploring menstrual health and the outdoors.
The guide combines current research with practical outdoor experience. It explores the menstrual cycle, common experiences and symptoms, menstrual products, period-friendly practice, expeditions, residentials, period poverty, neurodiversity, perimenopause and menopause.
Most importantly, it focuses on participation.
Because for me, this isn’t really about periods.
It’s about belonging.
It’s about ensuring that nobody misses out on meaningful outdoor experiences because they are worried about leaks, pain, toilet access, products or embarrassment. Those are barriers I have encountered myself more times than I care to remember.
Research suggests that stigma and silence are often bigger barriers than menstruation itself.⁴⁵ If that’s true, then outdoor educators have an incredible opportunity. By normalising conversations, carrying appropriate supplies and planning ahead, we can remove many of those barriers before they arise.
One of the most inspiring conversations I had while developing this resource was with Cara de Mello on the Love Outdoor Learning podcast. Our discussion highlighted just how important it is to talk openly about menstrual health and to recognise the practical realities of managing periods outdoors. You can listen to the episode here.
My hope is that this guide gives practitioners confidence.
Confidence to have conversations.
Confidence to plan ahead.
Confidence to support participants when they need it.
Because periods are a normal part of life.
And everybody belongs outdoors.
You can download a copy of this here or, if you prefer a hard copy, you can purchase this here.
References
- UK population estimates and demographic data.
- Office for National Statistics (ONS).
- Population estimates for reproductive-age individuals in the UK.
- Ludington, M.C. (2026). Wild periods: Learning from individual stories to better support communal experiences in the outdoors and beyond.
- Prince, H.E. & Annison, E. (2025). Men and menstruation: Views and perspectives influencing participation in adventurous activities.
