Last updated on July 28th, 2026 at 04:43 pm
Hygiene poverty affects an estimated 3 million children across the UK, contributing to more than 23 million lost school days every year[1]. It is a hidden but significant barrier to attendance, wellbeing, and long-term opportunity. Currently, more than 4.2 million adults in the UK are living in hygiene poverty[2], unable to afford everyday essentials such as soap, shampoo, and toothpaste.
Behind those figures are real stories: pupils avoiding school out of embarrassment because they haven’t showered in days, children struggling to participate in PE classes due to dirty PE kits, and children missing out on friendships and future opportunities.
Schools are where these challenges first become visible, and where they can be addressed with care, trust and consistency. This new initiative aims to break that cycle early.
A new partnership to drive lasting change
The Hygiene Bank is partnering with Helium Capital on a new three-year programme designed to end hygiene poverty as a barrier to education and long-term opportunity. Launching with a pilot in West London, the programme will work with Multi-Academy Trusts, maintained schools, and local volunteer networks to provide consistent, dignified access to essential hygiene products for pupils and their families.
The programme is not a one-off intervention. It’s about building sustainable, long-term support into the places families already trust.
This partnership will also help build the evidence base linking access to hygiene to school attendance, wellbeing, and future economic participation. We know that when children feel confident and supported, they are more likely to engage in education, build relationships, and pursue opportunities. By addressing hygiene poverty early, we can help remove one of the many barriers standing in their way.
Ruth Brock, CEO of The Hygiene Bank, says “This partnership with Helium Capital represents a powerful step forward in ending hygiene poverty at its roots. We are incredibly grateful for their commitment to a long-term, sustainable approach that puts children and families first. This partnership is helping to build a future where every child can thrive with dignity.”
Working towards systemic change
Hygiene poverty doesn’t exist in isolation. It is part of a wider landscape of inequality affecting millions of families across the UK.
That’s why this programme will also contribute to our wider advocacy work, helping to strengthen public understanding of hygiene poverty and its impact, and informing conversations around child poverty, education, and prevention.
Helium Capital founder and ambassador for The Hygiene Bank, Shamir Dawood says “Having spent more than 14 years supporting people out of homelessness, I’ve seen firsthand how a lack of access to basic hygiene products can impact every aspect of a person’s life, from wellbeing to future opportunities. This partnership is about restoring dignity and ensuring that no person’s future is limited by something as solvable as hygiene poverty”.
Looking ahead
We believe that every child deserves to go to school feeling clean, confident and ready to learn. Hygiene poverty makes that harder than it should be. But it’s solvable.
By working in partnership with Helium Capital, embedding support where it’s needed most, and listening to the experiences of schools and families, this programme aims to do more than meet immediate need. It aims to break a cycle.
In the coming months, we will be sharing insights, stories from local communities we work with and what we are learning along the way. Make sure to subscribe to our newsletter and stay tuned for updates as this partnership develops and the programme takes shape in schools across West London.
Together, we can continue working towards a future without hygiene poverty.
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Learn more about Helium Capital.
[1] smol and The Hygiene Bank research, September 2025
[2] Hygiene Poverty in 2024 report, The Hygiene Bank, 2024
