AFTER last year’s success, Worcestershire Pride is coming back for its second year.

With a new spin on things, the theme for 2018 will be, ‘Out in the Country,’ celebrating the county’s rural identity and the LGBT+ people that live and work here.

The day kicks off at 1.00pm on Saturday 22 September, introducing the first ever walking parade through the city centre, starting off at Cathedral Square and finishes at the South Quay. The day will include live music, cabaret, a family fun zone provided by Fortis, community markets and more.

Founder and chair of Worcestershire Pride, Andre Oldfield, said: “We have decided to do pride the week after freshers’ week. This will enable new students to settle in to the area and come along to feel part of a welcoming community.

“Last year’s pride was really fun. People in Worcester don’t usually come along for things like this, but we were surprised with the turnout.

“Out2gether, who are the LGBT+ charity for Worcester, joined us on one of the stalls. The turnout was amazing – in one day alone we signed up a significant number of members. It just shows that Worcester lacks the resources, and we aim to provide a platform for individuals to feel part of a community.

“The only gay bar we have is The Flag, in Lowesmoor. It is the only place in Worcester we can associate with the gay scene.

"It is a rural city, and when people associate queers they usually talk about London, Birmingham and Manchester. The topic gets ignored here, it appears we don’t exist.”

Mr Oldfield mentioned how he worries about the younger generation who are in the stage of coming out.

“The youngsters must struggle. There is nowhere for them to go to and no one to talk to. This year’s pride is symbolic, we want to express that even in the rural areas there are still queers about,” he added. “As a gay black man who grew up in South London, moving to Worcester four years ago to escape the big city life, made me realise that there is no queer identity in the rural areas. It is a real challenge that we need to overcome.”

National Lottery Awards For All have contributed towards funding for the event to go ahead.

Members of the Worcestershire Pride Committee are working hard to organise and fundraise for this year’s Worcestershire Pride. They are currently looking for sponsors for the event.

For further information email Info@worcestershirepride.org