Scarborough Pride to return after more than a decade

It's to make people aware that there's a community

Author: Karen LiuPublished 28th Jan 2023

Scarborough Pride is set to return this year after more than a decade.

It is to make people aware that there is a community out there to get support and meet others.

Organisers are hoping it will help tackle loneliness and poor mental health for those who are LGBTQ+.

George Wakely is one of them and said: "Quite a lot of the committee has moved from rural or city places and we realised that there wasn't that community openly available for people who are LGBTQ in the town.

"We wanted to do something that showed people that there was a community and allow people to meet each other. LGBTQ services are very, very small and far and few between in this part of the world, so we wanted to do something that made a difference to people and really showed everyone that there was a community out there that were together and willing to help each other.

"On the 30th of September, we'll be starting with a parade which will lead up to the Spa which is our venue for the day. We have multiple entertainment booked and we have a headliner lined up who we're looking forward to announcing very soon. There'll be a lot of local charities and businesses involved.

"We really wanted to show people that there is a welcoming community out there for them. Compared to cities there isn't really that bar, hub or place that you can just go and find LGBTQ people so we wanted to create that atmosphere here in Scarborough. We wanted to let people know that there is a welcoming community.

"We wanted to beat loneliness and tackle mental health related to kind of feeling that when you're LGBTQ+ there's no group around this way that can support that or even talk to you about it. We wanted to fight that and show people that there's a very loving and welcoming group of LGBTQ people.

"Since joining the committee, I've made a lot of LGBTQ friends which has such a great impact on my life. I think just in general moving to somewhere new and trying to meet new people it's hard let alone trying to meet LGBTQ people that understand your journey, your thought process, where you've come from and how you feel about particular things."

Find out more about Scarborough Pride on their website or Facebook page.

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