O2 UK has announced its support for 1GOAL, the FIFA-backed mobile campaign which aims to get every child out of poverty and into school by the year 2015.

O2 customers can show their support by signing up at www.o2.co.uk/1goal and from Friday 11 June, they can also sign up for free by texting 1GOAL to 20102. The results of 1GOAL will be presented to world leaders at a summit later this year as a petition for greater funding in education. 1GOAL aims to signup 72m people to show their support – one for every child out of school.

“Education is a basic right that every child should have access to. We’re very proud to be involved with 1GOAL’s campaign and to be able to offer our customers the opportunity to sign up to such a great cause via a free text message,” says O2 UK CEO, Ronan Dunne. “We’re committed to improving the lives of young people in the UK, Europe and Latin America and our new Think Big programme in the UK is an example of this commitment. It gives young people across the UK the encouragement and confidence to bring positive change to their communities.”

Think Big is a £5m, three-year campaign that champions the ideas of young people aged between 13 and 25 through grants, support and training. It aims to bring communities together, whilst improving the self-confidence of young people. O2 says it has the potential to improve the lives of 100,000 people between the ages of 13 and 25.

O2 is also an active supporter of parent company Telefónica’s Proniño programme. Proniño has helped nearly 164,000 children out of poverty and into education and is currently working with 108 leading charities and organisations in 13 countries to abolish child labour across Latin America. O2 employees are involved in the programme, spending time each summer teaching in Latin America, at schools attended by Proniño children.