Staff beam with pride in the lead up to this weekend's celebrations

A human rainbow appeared in front of Civic Hall yesterday as Leeds City Council employees and councilors came together to celebrate ahead of this weekend’s Leeds Pride.

On Sunday 5^th August, the city centre of Leeds will once again transform for a jam packed day of entertainment and the annual Leeds Pride parade.

The event attracts thousands of visitors to the city each year and is an opportunity for people to come together to celebrate the city's LGBT+ community and equality and diversity rights in a welcoming, inclusive atmosphere of fun and colour.

It’s one of the largest free Pride events in the UK, with 40,000 people coming together for the parade and party.

Leeds City Council is committed to making the event open for everyone, which is why they have once again provided two accessible buses to join the parade, which will help people less able to join in and get a flawless view of the colourful extravaganza.

The two buses will add to the space that will be available on the accessible platform in Millennium Square to enable great views of the stage for people with access difficulties.

The Civic Hall and Town Hall will be proudly displaying the Pride flag over the weekend and visitors to the city will also get to see the Civic Hall lit up in the colours of the rainbow.

On Saturday, Leeds City Council are also hosting a marketplace event in Brodrick Hall, Leeds City Museum, from 11am-3pm where people can go along and find out about LGBT+ services, support and social groups in Leeds.

For information about what’s on during the parade and party on Sunday please visit www.leedspride.com.

Councillor Jonathan Pryor, Leeds City Council’s executive member for Learning, Skills, Employment and Equality, said:

“Each year Leeds Pride attracts thousands of visitors to the city and is a truly wonderful, inclusive event for Leeds. Our city has a strong LGBT+ history which we are very proud of and every year Pride offers the chance to reflect on how far we have come in embracing inclusion, equality and diversity. To ensure the event is fully inclusive, Leeds Pride remains a free event, and we have two accessible buses joining the parade for the second year running which will help people less able to get a VIP view of the celebrations. I’m sure this weekend will be full of fun and colour and that people will turn out in their thousands to celebrate with us.”

Councillor James Lewis, Leeds City Council’s LGBT+ Champion said:

“It was fantastic to come together this morning to show our ongoing support and commitment to the LGBT+ community. We are proud of the excellent work that takes place across Leeds City Council to ensure we are an inclusive employer. Earlier this year we were named in the top 50 inclusive employers in the country by LGBT+ charity Stonewall and our LGBT+ Network continues to go from strength to strength. ”

ends

Notes to editors:

Becky Stubbs, Leeds City Council press office

rebecca.stubbs@leeds.gov.uk

0113 3786199