International Women's Day 2026: Give to Gain

For many of the women who come through the doors at Women’s Health Matters, support begins with something simple: being listened to without judgement. From that starting point, confidence grows, knowledge is shared, and new opportunities begin to emerge. Each year, International Women’s Day reminds us all to reflect, challenge inequality, and take action. The 2026 theme, Give to Gain, challenges us to think differently about how we can forge gender equality. It asks an important question: what if the more we give, the more we all can gain?

Looking back at IWD

For more than 100 years International Women’s Day has encouraged us to strive for gender equality. Recent themes have laid the foundations for this year. Last year, Accelerate Action, urged us to break down barriers more quickly and drive faster change. In 2024, Inspire Inclusion, focused on how we can create a world where women feel they truly belong, are respected and empowered. 2023’s theme, Embrace Equity, encouraged us to explore how equality alone is not enough and that true fairness requires equity where different needs are recognised and opportunity is redistributed accordingly. Now, Give to Gain asks us to go further.

What does ‘Give to Gain’ really mean?

Upon first thought, giving may seem only transactional, like donating money or giving a gift, but this theme encourages us to think more deeply. Giving does not have to always be through material items or money. In fact, some of the most transformative giving can cost very little or even nothing at all. For example, we can give respect, by listening and valuing others’ voices. We can give knowledge, through mentoring and sharing lived experiences. We can give celebration, by amplifying others’ achievements and making those visible who previously we could not see nor hear.

When we give these things freely and intentionally, we can gain communities that are stronger, more innovative, more inclusive, and deeply resilient. Gender equality is not something that diminishes when shared, it grows.

How does WHM ‘Give to Gain’?

At Women’s Health Matters, the idea of Give to Gain is not just a theme for one day. It reflects the way our work has been shaped for nearly four decades. Since 1987, we have supported women and girls to live safer, healthier lives through a woman-centred, holistic approach. Through this work, WHM aims to give respect, knowledge, safety, access, and opportunity to help women regain control of their own lives.

Giving respect is central to everything we do. One of our key values is that we are ‘warm’, this means being respectful, compassionate, and kind. In practice, this means that we listen without judgement, treat everyone with dignity and try to use supportive and inclusive language, and we expect our community to do the same. By giving respect, we gain confidence.

Another key principle of this work is the belief that knowledge grows when it is shared. Our support groups and training sessions are developed in collaboration with survivors and staff who bring valuable lived experience. As part of Leeds Domestic Violence Service, we run educational support groups for survivors of domestic violence and abuse, helping women develop a deeper understanding of abuse and its impact on both themselves and their children.

Our Bluebirds project focuses on increasing awareness of trauma and its effects, supporting women to better understand their experiences. Our Rainbow Hearts group provides a welcoming space for women seeking asylum to come together, learn about support services in Leeds, gain a clearer understanding of their rights, and receive support with learning English.

By sharing knowledge and listening closely to the lived experiences of the women we work with, we gain a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by our communities and can continually strengthen and improve the support we provide. By giving knowledge, we gain understanding.

The impact of this approach is clear. Our 2025 Snapshot Survey shows: 92% of women reported increased self-confidence, 93% felt better able to make their own choices, and 91% said they feel safer. Many also reported improvements in wellbeing and social connection: 83% saw improvements in physical wellbeing, 87% made friends who understand them, and 87% feel more positive about the future.

However, these outcomes are only possible when women are able to access support in the first place. Creating safe and accessible spaces is essential. Many women face practical barriers that can prevent them from accessing support. Women’s Health Matters works to remove these barriers through practical acts of support, such as covering travel costs and providing emergency assistance. Statistics from our 2025 snapshot survey highlight how important this support is. Eighty percent of women accessing WHM services have received food, clothing, or financial assistance, and 84% say they would not be able to attend sessions without help with travel costs. At a time when many are facing significant financial pressure, 95% reported that financial support from WHM helped them cope better with the cost-of-living crisis.

We recognise the growing need for women to access online spaces safely and independently. To address this, we have created a digital lending library that provides Chromebooks, tablets, and smartphones. Alongside this, our DigitALL Women project offers educational support to help women get online safely and confidently, enabling access to essential digital tools for everyday life.

Support like this makes participation possible and helps reduce the risk of exclusion, ensuring that more women can access the resources, information, and community they need. By giving access, we gain participation.

We also aim to create opportunities. Through co-facilitator roles, placements, volunteering, trustee positions, and inclusive working practices, we support women to develop skills, confidence, and leadership. For example, our Breathe Free course invites recent graduates of the programme to apply for a co-facilitator role. In this paid sessional position, women receive training and support while co-delivering the next course, allowing them to build experience and confidence in a supportive environment.

We are proud of our inclusive working practices. Women’s Health Matters is a Mindful Employer, a Women Friendly Recruiter, and a member of the West Yorkshire Fair Work Charter. We have also supported student placements in Art Therapy and Social Work, and we actively encourage women we have previously worked with to consider becoming trustees of WHM. These opportunities aim not only to support women in rebuilding their lives, but also to enable them to shape the future of our organisation and contribute to the wider community. By giving opportunity, we gain leadership.

Women’s voices show what these gains mean in practice. One respondent shared, “I feel empowered being around so many survivors and staff with lived experience. It has made me feel normal, not crazy or overreacting.” Another said, “WHM have helped me find my voice and recognise that what happened to me does not define my future.” Others spoke about growing confidence and self-understanding, with one woman explaining that she is “no longer ashamed of my past and now has the ability to use it as a strength to learn from.”

Through these examples, we hope to highlight what we believe the real meaning of Give to Gain is. When we give support, knowledge, respect, safety, and opportunity, women can gain confidence, independence, community, and hope for the future.

Call to Action

This year, International Women’s Day asks us to move beyond symbolic support and take action.

Ask yourself today:

What can I give today that creates opportunity for tomorrow?

Who can I elevate, support or advocate for?

Where can I remove a barrier instead of reinforcing one?

Give to Gain is so much more than just a theme for one day of the year. It is a reminder that progress happens when we invest in one another. When we give respect, we gain trust. When we give knowledge, we gain growth. When we give opportunity, we nurture leadership. This International Women’s Day, each of us has a chance to give something that helps build a more equal future.