TWO COMMONWEAL pupils will make their case to MPs and government officials for more funding for third world schools.

Year 9 girls Holly Griffiths and Maegan Watts will travel to Parliament on Wednesday with pupils from nine other schools from across the country. They will meet MPs, campaigners and hope to present their concerns to International Development Secretary Priti Patel.

The pair, who are leading members of the Old Town school’s campaign group the Malala Club, have spent the last year speaking to groups across Swindon for the Send My Friend to School campaign.

The nationwide campaign, which is organised by international group Global Campaign for Education, aims to get the UK government to increase the amount of funding going to build and support schools in the developing world.

In 2015 UK ministers signed up to the Sustainable Development Goals, which include the ambition to make sure that by 2030 all children are able to receive an education up to the age of 15.

Campaigners say that, at the current rate of progress, it will be 2084 before this ambition is realised.

Inspired by the campaign, pals Holly, Meagan and Megan Kamber spearheaded efforts to raise awareness of the campaign in Swindon – speaking in school assemblies across the town, visiting scout groups and urging staff at Nationwide to write to their MP about the campaign.

Teacher Lottie O’Brien, who is Commonweal School's joint head of social science and leads the school’s Malala Club, said: “I’m really proud of the girls. At such a young age, they’re just so inspirational. They’ve had to put themselves out there – doing public speaking and contacting MPs.”

Holly Griffiths, 14, said: “I want to get my voice heard. We’ve been working on this campaign for a few months now and I’d love for the people in power to listen to what I have to say.”

South Swindon MP Robert Buckland said he was 'looking forward' to meeting the Commonweal students at the Houses of Parliament. 

"Between 2011 and 2015 the UK supported over 11m children, including 5.3m girls, access primary and lower secondary education," he said.

"The government is committed to giving another 11m children in developing countries a decent education by 2020."