Nottinghamshire Pride 2014

Nottingham, England

The countdown to the event, which is on Saturday 26th July 2014 in the Creative Quarter (Lace Market & Hockley, in Nottingham city centre) has begun!

Nottinghamshire Pride 2014

However, if you have ever attended Nottinghamshire Pride before, you can expect quite a different day this year. Please take the time to read the information on this website to make sure you get the most out of the day.

We really need more volunteers and if you would like to know more please click on the Volunteer link.  We would really like to hear from you especially if you know your way around the city.

Wristbands for the event, plus the highly coveted Pride Guide will be available at a cost of £3 for the pack. As well as looking awesome, the wristband entitles the wearer to discounts and offers at selected Wristband Venues within the Creative Quarter area. The colourful Pride Guide will guide you to these Venues and contains information about the day.

The story and the People

In October 2013, following two AGMs,  Nottingham’s LGBTIQA community voted to wind down and close the charity. The decision was made after those in attendance were made aware of the scale of debt (circa £18,000, possibly more) that the charity owed to debtors.

(See exactly what is owed here –> Notts Pride Balance Sheet)

Later that month, following a massive outcry from the rest of the community who were not at either of the AGMs, an OGM was called, held at the Lord Roberts pub. There was much discussion, mostly concerning the still unconfirmed exact amount of the charity’s debt, and also concerning whether or not there will even be a pride in 2014. Members of the community, who had been at the previous AGMs and who cared passionately about the future of Pride each made the decision to stand on the committee. They stood despite the debt and despite the reputation of Nottinghamshire Pride all but in tatters. They stood with the support of the people in that room, and in the hope that with enough hard work, optimism and fresh outlook, the debt could be cleared and Pride may just be able to go ahead for 2014, albeit a pared-back Pride.

We, the committee that stood and were co-opted as the new Nottinghamshire Pride committee, strongly believe that being open and honest is paramount to bringing the community together to save pride and first clear the £18,000 debt. Only then can we see where we stand in making Pride happen in 2014. At the moment, there is still a lot of uncertainty regarding the past accounts, and without compromising any legal/police investigations we cannot say very much about it. But we know it’s the main question many of the community keep asking us, so please be assured that we are working hard to untangle the last few years of accounts: it’s difficult to do with only bits and bobs of information. We’ve listened to your comments, and we’ll keep listening and taking action. The efforts in fundraising are being directed towards tackling the debt. Without doing this first there will be no Pride, so this is the plan. The debtors are the very people who want to continue to have a Pride – they are members of Nottingham’s rainbow family. We want to ensure these people – essentially, you – are not left out of pocket, and are not ignored.

The community wants a Pride, so in order to overcome the pessimism and uncertainty of the past the community as a whole really needs to get behind this new committee. Let’s all make Pride ours.

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