Businesses have gathered to discuss plans for the future
Businesses have gathered to discuss plans for the future(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Liverpool Pride Quarter businesses have gathered to discuss tentative plans regarding the annual Pride festival. This comes after the LCR Pride Foundation, organisers of the planned 2025 event, announced the cancellation of the 2025 festival, which was scheduled for Saturday, July 26.
On June 16, Sahir House hosted a public Queer Town Hall meeting. The event welcomed representatives from the LCR Pride Foundation, local activists, and members of the LGBTQ+ community for an open and forward-looking discussion about what’s next for the city’s Pride events.
In the past week, in collaboration with the city’s stakeholders, businesses, and the council, Sahir House has floated plans for an outdoor rally at a prominent waterfront site or an indoor rally in the M&S Bank Arena.
In the Pride Quarter, home to Liverpool’s LGBTQ+ nightlife scene, Sahir has arranged the closure of Stanley Street and Cumberland Street for the event. Plans also include a central stage and stalls for local Pride Quarter businesses. This initiative is being coordinated by Liverpool Nightlife CIC, with support from Sahir and Liverpool BID.
Yesterday, June 17, eight of ten invited Pride Quarter businesses gathered to discuss the proposed plans. Liverpool Liberal Cllr Steve Radford, the first openly gay councillor in the city, who represents the Tuebrook and Sandycroft ward, chaired the informal meeting between LGBTQ+ businesses.
Cllr Radford told the ECHO: “Overall, the venues are taking the view of this being a PR disaster. This is not where you want to be to pull this together. We’re not over the line by a long way, but we have a sense of purpose and confidence that we will get there.
Stanley Street in Liverpool’s Pride Quarter(Image: Liverpool Echo)
“All the venues are pleased to hear safety measures are being put into the area. If the community doesn’t come together and put a safe space on the whole street, then the area will be chaotic and less clean.
“Past numbers at Pride show we need to improve the capacity in the venues and the streets. There are capacity concerns, but having this as an event and working with colleagues will provide a safer space than not organising anything at all.
“Having an outdoor space that is specifically set in place for the event will be safer, less pressurised and provide an outdoor space for people who need it.
“The city council is trying to pick up the pieces, and Liverpool BID has been incredibly supportive. There are lots of costings to consider, but the appropriate teams have worked hard to pull this together. There is an urgent need to drill down costings, and there is hope venues will come back with a special donation.”
Cllr Radford praised Manchester’s LGBTQ+ community for its monthly meetings with city stakeholders. He reported the Liverpool Pride Quarter businesses who were in attendance for yesterday’s meeting agreed a similar committee should be in place.
He added: “In the long run, we need to have something in place to prevent ourselves from ever falling into this position again. Manchester’s village hosts monthly meetings with the likes of Cllr Phil Burke, police, council, and village venues to discuss the event. Our venues are in agreement that they would like the same going forward.”
Sahir’s plans are yet to be officially confirmed, with conversations still underway with Liverpool City Council, local businesses and city stakeholders. You can read the plans in full here.
LCR Pride Foundation said it “failed to deliver a Pride that fully reflects our city’s LGBTQ+ community” in a lengthy statement shared last week.
The foundation said it “understands the anger and frustration” after a petition called for the organisation to be disbanded.
A statement issued today by LCR Pride Foundation accepts accountability for the perceived failures and said the organisation hopes to rebuild relationships with the community in the future.
Businesses have gathered to discuss plans for the future(Image: Liverpool Echo)
The statement reads: “Since our announcement last week, we have been carefully listening to the community’s response. What we have heard is that our organisation has repeatedly failed to deliver a Pride that fully reflects our city’s LGBTQ+ community. We completely agree.
“As relatively new board members, with some only joining in the midst of last year’s event planning, it is what we have also observed as we have taken up our roles. It is another reason we have stopped this year to take a breath.
“The reasons behind the decision to cancel our two events have been complex and myriad; connected to funding, timescales and the capacity of our team of now three volunteer directors.
“But also considered was fully understanding what the community wants from Pride. Before we next deliver our events, we need to ensure they are community- led and better serve our diverse needs. We can only do that by rebuilding our relationships.
“For those calling for us to close, to step away, we get it. However, we still have services we deliver, and resources, connections and influence that we know can help support LGBTQ+ people in the city region. We don’t want to lose that because we know that – used correctly – it is vital.
“That’s why our next action after our announcement was to speak to other organisations – including Sahir who have stepped up to mobilise and facilitate the community – to see how we could use what resources we do have available this year to help the community-led response however we can.”
The statement continues: “We are grateful for those organisations who we have spoken to for hearing our position, understanding our decision and inviting us back to the conversation.
“Let’s be clear – we fully understand the community’s anger and frustration concerning our involvement. We understand the lack of trust.
“We want you to know that new leadership is in place in the organisation which values community collaboration, open dialogue and wants our future Pride events to be community-led.
“It is our job to rebuild that trust through clear communication, transparency and actions – starting now. As such, we have registered to attend Sahir’s events next week to be part of discussions. We hope that, in coming weeks, we can reintroduce the organisation with a very different vision for the future.
“We don’t expect this to be easy, but we are willing to put in the work. Our email addresses are below for if you would like to arrange to speak to us directly. We are also currently seeking new trustees to help us shape the future of the organisation, so please do reach out to us if this is of interest to you. With Pride & Solidarity Amanda, Nikki and Matt LCR Pride Foundation Board of Directors nikki.girvan@lcrpride.co.uk amanda.hilton@lcrpride.co.uk matt.exley@lcrpride.co.uk.”