Views & News

Views and News


by Pride in Surrey 25 Apr, 2024
A survey collecting data surrounding the need for LGBTQ+ Safe Spaces in Surrey has opened by Pride in Surrey. Have your say on what safe spaces like 'Pride Hub' offer for the local LGBTQ+ community. Take the short anonymous survey, to have your say on: Resources and services Events and social groups What products should be available How a safe space should look
by Pride in Surrey 25 Apr, 2024
Back in 2021, Pride in Surrey opened their LGBTQ+ safe space and shop on Station Approach Woking. The venue offers a space for social groups and creative workshops, alongside a retail offering fundraising for the annual Pride in Surrey event. The venue was officially opened by Pride Patron, Hazell Dean on 4th December 2021. For the last year, redevelopment works on the building above and surrounding the Pride Hub has played havoc with the venue and has hindered access and footfall on a number of occasions. Following a notification of further building works starting this month, which is set to take until spring 2025 to be completed, the Directors of Pride in Surrey have taken the decision to terminate the lease on the Woking Pride Hub and to relocate it to another town in Surrey. The last trading day of Pride Hub Woking will be Sunday 12th May 2024.
Hazell Dean is presented with LGBTQ+ Lifetime Commitment Award 2024 from Pride in Surrey.
by Stephen Ireland 21 Apr, 2024
The winner of the Pride in Surrey, 2024 LGBTQ+ Lifetime Commitment Award is Queen of HiNRG and Patron of Pride in Surrey - Hazell Dean. The award was presented to Hazell at her 40th anniversary of hit single "Searchin'".
by Pride in Surrey 03 Apr, 2024
Pride in Surrey are excited to announce that they will be partnering with The Fallen Angel, Guildford’s only cocktail and cabaret bar, to bring the first cabaret stage to a Pride in Surrey event. Bringing comedy, outrage and amusement to Guildford every week with their fabulous cabaret nights, the award-winning Fallen Angel bar has been host to a range of queer talent since it opened in 2022. As an LGBTQ+-friendly venue, the bar has brought joy to Guildford’s local community with its welcoming, yet always daring attitude. Charlie Watts, Pride in Surrey’s Chief Executive: “We are thrilled to be partnering with such an inclusive venue, and we know the Fallen Angel’s cabaret tent will add yet another amazing element to our event in Stoke Park this September. As Pride in Surrey grows, it is great that we can continue to introduce new and exciting things that we hope Surrey’s LGBTQ+ community will love!” The cabaret tent joins the Pride in Surrey main stage in hosting a wide range of talent from Surrey and beyond, bringing beloved names as well as celebrating local talent. On top of the incredible acts, this year’s event features a huge variety of food and drink, stalls from local businesses and charities, as well as a funfair. Tickets for this year’s event are available here!
by Pride in Surrey 16 Feb, 2024
The first annual Pride in Surrey Awards took place at The Mandolay Hotel, an exceptional four star hotel & events venue in Guildford. The event kicked off at 6.30pm, hosted by Pride in Surrey volunteers, inviting all shortlisted award nominees and Pride partners, bringing together community leaders, advocates, allies, and organisations to commemorate the progress made in embracing and supporting the LGBTQ+ community.
by Pride in Surrey 10 Feb, 2024
Pride in Surrey are excited to announce that this year’s Pride event will be taking place in Stoke Park, Guildford on Saturday 21st September. This year marks the fifth anniversary since Pride in Surrey’s very first Pride event in Woking back in 2019. Pride has come a long way in last five years, bringing annual events around the county, growing the event with every town visited. It's an exciting opportunity to bring the LGBTQ+ event to Guildford town for the first time. Pride in Surrey were in a fortunate position to be able to open a bidding process for the first time this year, after receiving a number of requests from different councils to bring Pride in Surrey to their towns. Charlie Watts, Chief Executive: "After much deliberation, we have decided that Guildford would be a great fit for our 2024 event. Pride in Surrey would like to thank all the councils who reached out to put themselves forward to host our event. I am so thrilled that we will be bringing Pride in Surrey to Guildford this year. It is a truly wonderful town and Stoke Park will make for a beautiful location for our event. Being the 5th anniversary of our first event, we hope to make this year’s event our biggest yet and encourage the people and organisations of Surrey to get involved to celebrate our community.” Cllr Julia McShane, Leader of the Council: “I am delighted that we have been able to work to bring Pride in Surrey to Guildford for its fifth anniversary year. Having attended a few of their celebrations around Surrey I know how valuable it will be for our LGBTQ+ communities to be seen, heard and celebrated here in Guildford. We very much look forward to 21st September and welcoming everyone to what will be a very colourful event in Stoke Park.” As in previous years, Pride in Surrey’s event will commence with a parade through Guildford town towards Stoke Park. The day itself will bring Stoke Park alive with a whole host of live music, highlighting amazing talent from Surrey and beyond, as well as food and drink, outreach stalls and much more. Cllr Catherine Houston, Portfolio Holder, Commercial Services: “Bringing Pride in Surrey to Guildford, the heart of Surrey, is incredibly exciting. On 21st September our town will be buzzing with colour, laughter and joy. It is important to let our LGBTQ+ communities know that they are valued and supported and this event reflects this message loud and clear. Additionally, we know that host towns are always thrilled with the effect that Pride in Surrey brings to their local economy and so we look forward to the financial boost Pride will bring to our local businesses, large and small.” The Pride in Surrey team are gearing up to share more details about this year’s event in the coming weeks. Tickets for the September event are now available via the Pride in Surrey website and are offered on a 'pay what you can basis' keeping Pride accessible for as many people as possible.
by Pride in Surrey 31 Dec, 2023
Pride in Surrey are thrilled to be included in the annual Kelly's Guildford 10K and 5K charity run raising funds for Pride in Surrey, organised in partnership with the University of Surrey Students' Union taking place in LGBT History Month.
by Pride in Surrey 20 Oct, 2023
Pride in Surrey are pleased to announce that we will be bringing an annual LGBTQ+ Expo to Surrey and would love you to be a part of it. The Expo will be a two day event which coincides with LGBT History Month, taking place on Thursday 15th and Friday 16th of February in Guildford. Expo is a public event and offers a platform for LGBTQ+ organisations and visitors to come together. The Expo will reflect our core three values at Pride in Surrey; Celebrate, Educate and Connect. We will be Celebratin g the achievements and dedication of individuals and businesses from across Surrey, with our awards and recognition ceremony. There will be a number of talks, seminars and workshops with the aim to Educate and raise awareness of LGBTQ+ topics, from allyship to gender identity & expression to pronoun awareness and much more. The Expo aims to Connect services to service users. We will be opening the event to 30+ organisations, enabling them to showcase their services, support and products. As well as showcasing inclusive products and services, this exciting new event will provide a platform in tackling the following social and economic issues: Unemployment and inclusive career opportunities. Homelessness and the cost of living crisis. Sexual Health and general wellbeing. The rise in LGBTQ+ hate crime. We are inviting organisations to express interest in attending the February Expo - for more information see the Expo Page .
by Pride in Surrey 08 Oct, 2023
For the first time, Pride in Surrey have opened a bidding process for Borough Councils to enter to host the 2024 event in their own towns. This year Pride was held in Reigate on September 9th and each year the event that attracts thousands of visitors moves around the county. The 2024 event will mark the organisations’ fifth Pride event. Charlie Watts, Pride in Surrey Chief Executive says, “Reigate this year was a huge success, it enabled us to grow our event and reach out to a different area of Surrey, each year we are getting bigger and bigger, and we already have the ball rolling for the next Pride”. Straight after Reigate, Pride received requests from three Surrey borough’s requesting Pride to be hosted in their towns. Because of this, Pride in Surrey have decided to open an official bidding process for Pride 2024, and if needed, Pride 2025. Charlie also said, “This is the first time we have been in this situation, but it’s great to see councils’ activity seeking to host Pride in their boroughs”. Pride in Surrey aims to announce the location of Pride 2024 before Christmas. For more Information on Pride 2024 and the bidding process, please click here.
Event Happening At The Surrey History Centre October 2023
by Stephen Ireland 03 Oct, 2023
The 50 LGBTQI+ Who Changed The World - Come and see this fabulous display October 2023.
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