Today saw the Prime Minister welcome campaigners, teachers and young women to Downing Street to celebrate the global achievements of girls in education and entrepreneurship.
Teachers and pupils joined guests including FGM campaigner Fahma Mohammed; Science Girl director Anna Zacharia; Amy Stephens, founder of Chicks with Bricks, a network connecting women in the construction industry; and Belinda Parmar, activist and founder of The Empathy Business, an organisation that encourages companies to embrace corporate empathy.
The PM also met several Youth Advocates from Girl Guides; one of the UK’s most well-known charities for girls and young women.
These included 19-year-old Isla Gerrard, 17-year-old Emily Jenkins, and Kim Singh Sall, aged 18, who discussed their girl-led manifesto, Future Girl, with the Prime Minister. They also shared findings of their Girls’ Attitudes survey.
Commenting is Prime Minister, Boris Johnson. “Today’s event was a fantastic opportunity to meet so many trailblazers in the world of education and empowerment for girls and women.
“I’m passionate about making sure girls everywhere get access to a good education; that’s why I announced funding for 600,000 children to have the chance to go to school for the first time at the G7 summit last week. I was tremendously inspired by the young women I’ve met today. I’m confident their successes will encourage a new generation of female leaders.”
Other Ministers attending the reception included Gavin Williamson, Secretary of State for Education; Alok Sharma, Secretary of State for International Development; plus Matthew Rycroft, Permanent Secretary at the Department for International Development.
Also commenting is Gavin Williamson, Secretary of State for Education.
“This summer hundreds of thousands of young people received their GCSE, A Level and technical and vocational result,” he says. “Girls, in particular, have excelled themselves. For the first time, girls are now doing more science A Levels than boys. The highest proportion of GCSE entries achieving grade 4 or above were from girls, with more A Level entries from girls receiving A* to A.
“There’s always more to do though. I’ll continue working to make sure every child and young person is getting the education they deserve. That means continuing to attract and retain talented individuals in our classrooms. Giving teachers the powers they need to deal with bad behaviour and bullying. Also, getting more young people to consider high quality technical and vocational routes so this country has the skilled workforce it needs for the future.”
