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.