fund GPE to support women and girls
As a founding partner and its largest bilateral donor, the UK has historically been a world leader in global education. One wait is has done this is by championing the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) to transform school systems worldwide.
Between 2021 and 2025 alone, GPE programmes reached 372 million children, placing gender equality at the heart of its mission to dismantle barriers for the most marginalised girls.
However, this proud legacy is under immediate threat. Following severe cuts to the UK’s aid budget, the Government omitted GPE from its recent three-year Official Development Assistance allocations. This omission raises urgent fears of a deep, disproportionate funding cut for GPE’s 2026-2030 replenishment. Such a drop would not only limit the fund’s capacity but could also signal other donors to withdraw, devastating global education.
With Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper currently deciding the UK’s financial pledge, public action is vital. While the Government recently protected funding for emergency education, GPE requires equal support to sustain long-term schooling. By writing to MPs now, we can pressure the Foreign Secretary to protect this investment – ensuring millions more girls secure their right to a classroom, more teachers are trained, and the UK maintains its vital role in empowering women and girls worldwide.
Your voice counts! Email your MP about the UK’s responsibility to ensure education for women and girls around the world.
fund GPE to support women and girls
[Name]
I am writing to you as a constituent of yours and someone who is deeply concerned about the UK’s support for global education and international development. Ensuring that every child – regardless of where they are born – has access to a quality education is fundamental to reducing global poverty, building economic stability, and fostering a more just and equal world.
The Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper, has rightly placed women and girls at the very center of the UK’s international development agenda. However, I am concerned that when the Government released its three-year Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget allocations on 19 March, the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) was entirely omitted. As the world’s fund for strengthening national education systems, GPE plays an indispensable role in dismantling the unique barriers that keep girls out of school, helping to reach the most marginalised children in conflict-affected regions.
The UK is a founding partner and the largest bilateral donor to GPE, but the omission in the budget raises serious fears of a deep, disproportionate funding cut. A severely reduced UK pledge would not only hamper GPE’s ability to deliver its 2026-2030 strategy but would also send a damaging signal to other global donors. While the Government’s recent decision to fully protect funding for ‘Education Cannot Wait’ is a fantastic and welcome step, these two funds must work in tandem to fully address the scope of global education needs.
I urge you to write to the Foreign Secretary, pressing her to protect the UK’s investment in the Global Partnership for Education in its upcoming replenishment. Maintaining our commitment is vital to ensuring millions more girls can access the classroom, thousands more teachers are trained, and the UK remains a proud leader in supporting the future of women and girls globally.
I look forward to hearing from you regarding the actions you take.
Yours sincerely,
[Your name]