EmpowHER

To mark the centenary of women’s suffrage, UK Youth’s EmpowHER programme, jointly funded with the #iwill Fund, aimed to support young women and girls to use their voices for positive change – just as their predecessors did 100 years ago.

Spirit of 2012 and the #iwill Fund invested £1.3million each in the first phase of the EmpowHER programme, delivered by UK Youth.  The #iwill Fund is made possible thanks to a £66 million joint investment from The National Lottery Community Fund and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to support young people to access high quality social action opportunities.

Established in 2018 to mark the centenary of some women being allowed to vote, EmpowHER helped young women and girls lead change in their communities, increase their self-esteem and build wellbeing by providing inclusive and meaningful social action opportunities.

UK Youth delivered face-to-face activity sessions with young women and girls through their network of youth organisations. The sessions focused on themes of individuals’ rights, empowerment and resilience, as well as activities exploring inspirational women in history. The young women and girls were supported to give back to their community through inclusive and meaningful social action opportunities, provided by partner organisations such as the British Red Cross.

EmpowHER addressed the worryingly low levels of wellbeing amongst young women and girls in the UK and supported them to use their voice, be heard and give back to their local communities. Almost 2,000 girls and young women have participated in the programme, with 63% reporting improved wellbeing and 68% reporting improved confidence.