WUKA has announced a groundbreaking partnership with the Royal Yachting Association (RYA), including RYA Scotland and RYA Northern Ireland, supporting women and girls in sailing.

Building on WUKA’s growing #TackleAnything campaign – which has already reached thousands of girls across sports in the UK – this collaboration brings practical period solutions into sailing.

Together, WUKA and the RYA are committed to breaking down barriers so periods never limit confidence, participation, or performance on the water.

Ruby Raut, WUKA founder & CEO, said: “Partnering with the RYA has been incredibly important for us at WUKA.

“Sailing is an amazing way for women and girls to build confidence, and periods shouldn’t hold anyone back from enjoying the water or reaching their full potential.

“Through this partnership and our #TackleAnything campaign, we’re proud to provide practical solutions and innovative products that help female sailors feel comfortable, confident, and free to focus on learning, performing, and having fun.

“Breaking down barriers and supporting women to tackle anything — on land, at sea, and everywhere in between – has never felt more meaningful.”

WUKA, which stands for Wake-Up Kick Ass, shares the RYA’s commitment to inclusivity and empowerment.

In 2023, WUKA launched #TackleAnything, a campaign supporting women, girls and sportspeople with periods. Since its launch, the initiative has reached 3,576 girls across 46 clubs and partnered with a range of sports across the UK – from Scottish Gymnastics to Titans wheelchair basketball – helping young athletes play without limits and stay confident, comfortable, and in the game.

The brand offers period-friendly aquatic apparel and practical solutions that help women train and compete with freedom of movement and total assurance.

Through this partnership, WUKA will provide innovative period swimwear for young sailors across key RYA programmes, including the NI Sailing Team, the RYA Scotland Performance Pathway Programme, and the British Sailing Pathways Talent Academies.

By combining WUKA’s mission to challenge stigma with the RYA’s commitment to inclusion, the partnership ensures young sailors can focus on what matters most – learning, performing, and enjoying their time on the water – with confidence and comfort. RYA members will also receive a 10 per cent discount on WUKA products.

Sailing offers incredible benefits for women and girls, but time on the water can present unique challenges -particularly during menstruation.

Together, WUKA and the RYA are providing practical solutions that remove these barriers, helping young sailors participate fully and confidently in the sport.

Sara Sutcliffe, RYA CEO, said: “At the RYA, we have been making strides to break down barriers for women of all ages to help ensure they can experience the water in a supportive and positive environment.

“From education workshops and practical sessions, we want to make sure our female sailors are empowered and this partnership is another great example of how we can demonstrate possible tools to equip them to succeed”.

This partnership is part of the RYA’s wider commitment to making sailing a sport where women and girls can thrive. Alongside initiatives such as the Female Futures Group, the Women’s Race Officials Programme and all new Talent Academy Female Future’s Camps; it demonstrates a continued focus on removing barriers and creating meaningful opportunities across every stage of the sailing.

WUKA’s involvement ensures that practical solutions are available on the water, from innovative period swimwear to support resources, helping young sailors feel fully equipped and confident during training and competition.

By integrating these tools into RYA programmes, WUKA brings a new level of comfort and assurance to female athletes, allowing them to focus entirely on performance, enjoyment, and growth in the sport.

For any women and girls looking to learn more about sailing, visit www.rya.org.uk.

For more information on WUKA visit www.wuka.co.uk.

London’s shifting population is holding down breast screening uptake, experts have said, with the capital at 62.8 per cent in 2024, below the NHS’s acceptable 70 per cent threshold.

The London Assembly Health Committee recently heard that the capital faces distinct challenges compared with the rest of the country and that these issues must be addressed.

Josephine Ruwende, a cancer screening lead at NHS England, said frequent moves within the rented sector and the cost-of-living crisis pushing people out of London had made it difficult to reach eligible patients, which she described as “population churn”.

She said: “This is people changing addresses and then not updating their GP, this then affects the invitation process because GP details are used to identify individuals who are eligible.

“In boroughs where we have the highest population churn, we see it strongly associated with lower uptake.”

She noted that even in the wealthiest boroughs there can be high levels of movement, with around 40 per cent of residents changing address within a year.

Such areas also tend to have more people who own second homes or spend long periods abroad, making it harder for the NHS to keep contact details up to date.

As a result, screening invitations may be sent to out-of-date addresses or to people who are overseas.

Leeane Graham, advocacy lead at Black Women Rising, which supports women of colour with a cancer diagnosis, said there were cultural barriers, fear and a mistrust of the health service due to previous experience within communities.

She said: “If you’ve never been for a breast screening before, the thought of having a mammogram can be really, really terrifying.”

Helen Dickens, from Breast Cancer Now, said other reasons included a lack of understanding of breast screening, along with concerns about discomfort, trust and practical issues such as travel.

She said: “We have amazing public transport and we feel that we’ve got great accessibility, but we also know that we don’t have screening centres in every borough.

“We know that for some women that barrier of transport and access will still be a really big reason why they’re not attending screenings.”

NHS London launched its first screening campaign last year in response to the figures, aiming to increase detection at an earlier stage.