The UK government announced the fund on 27 October, the day before the Budget. It will pay for youth mentoring, workplace training and public campaigns, and ministers want business and philanthropy to match it.
Content note: this article mentions domestic abuse and sexual violence.
The UK government will put £15m over three years into its first misogyny prevention fund, it announced on 27 October. That money will back schemes such as youth mentoring, workplace training and communications campaigns. Their aim is to improve outcomes and safety for women and girls across the UK.
Grants will go out through a bidding process run by the Office for the Impact Economy, working with the Office for Equality and Opportunity. Ministers will also seek matching money from companies and philanthropists, PA reported.
"This funding is a critical step as we work to confine misogyny to the history books, where it belongs," said Bridget Phillipson, Minister for Women and Equalities.
Part of a target to halve violence in a decade
GOV.UK names existing work the fund could build on. One example is Women's Aid's Expect Respect schools programme. Others are mentoring and bystander projects funded by the Mayor of London, and Equimundo's workplace training for men on gender equality.
Ministers set out their strategy on violence against women and girls, Freedom from violence and abuse, in December 2025. It sets a national target to halve such violence within a decade. By the end of the current parliament, every secondary school in England is due to have a credible offer of healthy relationships education.
About 2.2 million women aged 16 and over in England and Wales experienced domestic abuse in the year to March 2025. That is 9.1% of women, against 6.5% of men, according to the Office for National Statistics. The ONS advises caution with these figures, because the 2025 survey used a smaller split sample.
How it compares
Globally, an estimated 840 million women, nearly one in three, have faced partner or sexual violence in their lifetime. The World Health Organization (WHO) published that estimate in November 2025 and said the figure has barely changed since 2000. In 2022, just 0.2% of global development aid went to programmes that prevent violence against women.
Australia gives one comparison. Its government committed A$100.4m over five years, from 2022-23 to 2026-27, to Our Watch, its national prevention organisation. That money covers prevention in sport, universities, workplaces and the media, and work with men and boys.
WHO's RESPECT framework, published in 2020, sets out seven strategies for preventing violence against women. They include strengthening relationship skills and changing attitudes, beliefs and norms. Mentoring, school programmes and workplace training fall within those strands.
What the announcement leaves open
GOV.UK hasn't said how the fund's results will be measured or which groups it will prioritise. Nor has it given a date for the first grants. The fund will support the national misogyny prevention taskforce led by the Minister for Women and Equalities.
If you are affected by domestic abuse in the UK, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is free and open 24 hours a day. Refuge runs it, on 0808 2000 247. In an emergency, call 999. Elsewhere, a local health service or women's support organisation can help you find support.
Header image: Devin Avery on Unsplash